


duality of three

by orphan_account



Series: recoding [1]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Multi, Mutual Pining, Polyamory, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2019-05-29
Packaged: 2020-03-20 19:57:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,935
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18999451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: A hacker reconnects with an old friend for some projects. But mostly for trouble. Their name is Mar Rozeki, a talented hard-light sculpture and a Drifter, a kind genius just trying to protect Hawaii. Too bad that’s all a lie. Mar is definitely not the mysterious streamer named Pidgin who is definitely not developing feelings for their crush's crush...Sombra/OC established friendship. Eventual poly with Widowmaker.Nonbinary OC.





	1. floating low on high memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> google translations after paragraph for easy reading  
> secret life shenanigans  
>    
> Cover image: https://pink-wisp.tumblr.com/post/184351467242/wat-up-yall-im-writing-a-sombraoc-fic-and-drew-a

Today, with the help of the entire hacking network of Mexico and a few others around the world, Sombra… the Sombra Collective's several month long game reached its end.

Many of the Drifters in Hawaii were a part of the hacking spree on LumériCo. Mar had nothing to worry about but their gut still twisted and churn like a surfer caught in the tides. This was a bad idea, this could lead to an ocean of trouble but they wanted to dive in.

Mar took a deep breath, heart beating to a familiar rhythm despite no music. They were on a high, the kind that threaten to overload their systems, an edge that made their skin crawl with lightning and too much energy.

The drifter was careful not to touch anyone as they moved into position. The crowd only gave them a curious glance. Locals cheered and bid Mar a good day while a few nervous dancers smiled. The clothes Mar wore were nothing special. The dancers will need to fade in and out of the crowd for the full effect but the leads, those that dived and scavenge omnic parts on the ocean floor, wore glowing body paint. Los Muertos style.

They tucked their glasses into a pocket. A few dancers were already recording. No one would question two more drones right?

_10:00 HST. Pidgin Live! Sweet, sweet Anarquía!_

The stream opened on the Vishkar Academy, camera slowly panning down to show the billboard on the front. Mar's graffiti mural painted bright across it, like a hacked system, glitches still smelling of fresh paint. The _collective's_ sugar skull could be seen from the mountains.

A beat startled the crowd, enough dancers acted surprised and walked away from Mar, herding the crowd away and giving the drifter room to start. On the next beat they ripped the zipper to their jacket open, throwing their head back and shaking their hair out, replaying a memory that's been looping in their head the past few nights.

The air wasn't the same as it was in Mexico but the sun felt almost as good as the hot bodies in the club. Their heart was slowly pounding, a beat faster, wave harder. Hidden speaker started blasting, the sound working into their bones. It was so similar. The feeling they were chasing slipping through fingers. Mar's hands ran over their hips, sliding up and catching at the loose crop top, body swaying to Latin hip hop.

Their eyes flung open, stream chat filtering into the corner their vision. A wall of groans and pleads flashed in their eyes, recalling the sound wolf whistles and cheers as the two augmented troublemakers danced closer.

For a second the memory completely swallowed them. _Hands, sweat, a burning body and a low timbre taunt grazing their ear with soft lips, the dark eyes of a predator challenging them, "Keep up, pollito."_ Mar blinked back to reality, warm metal fluttering on their bare hips.

"Sorry Mar," Lynx said, the buzz and hum of electronics anything but apologetic. "Tried to warn you but you were a little… focused." The omnic's hands sent a shiver up their spine, grounding them out of their memories and in the present. Lynx pressed a little harder, a little closer. Any awkwardness was worked out through months of practice and their rhythm was unnaturally synced. "Good?"

"Small kine high, so I'll be fine." Mar smiled, arms up and tangling around Lynx's neck. Omnic hands wandered up and up, firm but gentle pressure wandering from their throat to their hair.

"A little high on what?" Lynx chirped a little confused.

The omnic's answer only came with a laugh, "On life." And the reaction of a hundred views, and a secret so well hidden it was flaunted on their skin. The chat disappeared from their vision just as Hana and Yuna started moderating, trying to calm everyone down.

Pidgin will deal with that later. Mar gets to dance like they were back in Castillo, singing loudly as the flash mob truly started. " _Déjame quitarte el maquillaje. Déjame sentirte y abrazarte."_ Good thing their partner was an omnic, using Sombra's old playlist almost drowned Mar in fond memories.  
** Let me take off your makeup. Let me feel and hug you

The dances were quick and the protest lasted till the evening so several flash mobs were spread out over the hours. The setting sun was que to wind down and Mar found themselves hounded by different people, rivaling companies but it was the same questions again and again. Why the Atlantis district, why a flash mob, wasn't Mar aware Los Muertos was terrorist organization? Why the fuck did they always come to them?

Eventually the other Drifters gathered the reports in front of the Vishkar building to answer their questions. Mar slipped into the bathroom, reapplying the glowing paint and to maybe do some damage control so Pidge wouldn't be completely fucked over. They open the stream chat with a thought.

Pidgin: Howzit! Ya'll not talkin stink, yeah?  
D.Mon: oh so you weren't hacked  
King: !translate talkin stink  
Mushubot: Hawaiian Creole English. trash talk, gossip.  
Pidgin: Nah, was one of the dancers

Mar stopped. Heart dropping hard into the cold abyss as chat exploded trying to guess which one the mysterious streamer was. They didn't answer but noticed a trend. Screenshot after screenshot, which tall sculpted drifter was Pidgin? Mar had to laugh and shake their head, they were so cold but it was nice that it was an even split between masculine and feminine.

Pidgin: brah, y ya'll think I'm one of the glowing ones? I no moke  
Casino: cuz their all hot as fuck  
King: @pidgin what?  
Pidgin: i'm not buff lol. But glad chat thinks I have a popular body type?  
Pidgin: anyway gotta dance 'gain. Enjoy the show \m/

Mar had to cut the talk short when several notifications flashed at the corner of their eye. One was Whiptail telling them to hurry up or he'll toss the annoying reporters into the ocean. The second was their mother giving an update from the Cove. The sensors were picking up more omnics in the ocean, probably because everyone's been busy with the protest to clean out the repair drones.

The drifter closed both messages and did one last check on the paint. They slipped on their glasses and headed out. The Drifters been talking about this since Lynx Seventeen brought the Sombra's LumériCo project to them, so the questions were well rehearsed. It's been a while since their theater classes so that small nervousness in front of so many cameras and mics warmed their palms. Only a little.

Why the Atlantis district? Mar answered with a smile, augments gently framing their face, "Because the Atlantis district is home not to just omnic refugees," They counted the number of people that did a double take, surprised at their low voice. Mar made a note to give the local reporters priority.

They continued, talking a little slower to milk their naturally honey voice, "But to everyone who share the island spirit." Half a lie. This was the only Vishkar building in Hawaii. But the Atlantis district was primary an omnic area, almost 70% of refugees lived there. A peaceful protest showed union, dancing and happy omnics send a message that they were welcomed while inconveniencing Vishkar.

Why a flash mob? "To protest and celebrate. We may side with Los Muertos' cause but we do not condone violence. Hawaii always had a rebellious spirit but we only survived till this point through passion, empathy and love." That was the official statement by the Drifters. Mar just wanted to dance… they were trying to chase something that was missing and dancing was a the closest high they could get out of the abyss.

And the Los Muertos paint? Mar smiled and the cold distance from her mother's side slipped through. It unsettled the reporters while the drifters chuckled a little, still the only person that could see through Mar was across an ocean and only met Pidgin.

The only wars that touched Hawaii were the human ones decades ago. Mar answered, shoulders easing out of a predatory stance, "We Drifters _Go for Broke_."

\--

"What the… Aaaagh! _Pullito!"_

Pidge laughed but didn't rush their shower. Years ago, after they came back from Mexico, Pidgin got a special apartment. One specifically to fuck with Sombra. Everything was analog, no smart lights or net connected calendars. Everything was old school with the exception of their gaming equipment and a trap or two.

It was a different stage, Mar barely existed here. It was Pidgin the mysterious streamer, the anarchist with fully extended augments across their cheeks and nose, framing their face to get rid of the softness everyone loved in Mar. The only thing personal here is their underwear, the only thing they had on when they walked out of the bathroom.

Pidge smirked down at the robotic teddy bear, it was built from omnic scraps but they had almost a year to clean and polish it. Half the trap was to bait Sombra into hacking the weakest point, the other half was to get her obsessed with rewriting the horrible code so it could actually function.

The normally dead lights glowed and dulled. Like an angry pouting child, a metal foot tapped at the floor. For a moment Pidge wondered how Sombra was controlling it, was she sitting on their bed triggering the input by thought or repetitively tapping at a keyboard?

"Your code sucks." Sombra muttered after a moment. Both? Pidge's augmented hearing picked up the soft clattering of a keyboard but the tapping never lost rhythm and it was slowly crashing their nerves.

Pidgin cleared their throat and switched the voice modulator on. It made their voice a little higher, synthesized it to add a fluctuating echo almost like an omnic. Sombra let out an annoyed huff but didn't comment.

"I'm an artist and a gamer, not a hacker."

"And here I thought you were a doctor." Came Sombra's dry tone, a response on autopilot still accompanied by furious keystrokes. Tap, tap, tap, the metal foot continued.

Pidge knelt down to the trap bear, squeezing the water from their hair and wiping down any droplets that fell on their neck and chest. They watched the omnic eyes dilate, lens zooming in and out of focus, aperture widening. Minute shifts directed their gaze, shoulder, chest, ribs, following the augments then back to their face. Was the camera working right?

Tap. Tap. Tap-

Pidge picked up the little robotic bear ignoring a surprised yelp from Sombra and their little choppy flails as she tried to get free. "Okay lil' _malu_ , no move. Yeah?" Pidge said setting Sombra's bot onto their desk.

Before they could even turn around the tiny thing gave their mouse a light kick, waking up the computer, and throwing itself onto it's back. Sombra cursed and Pidge only laughed softly with a shake of their head.

A quick check at the workbench and Pidgin returned to their desk with rubber strips and glue in hand. Sombra was trying to guess their password, the bot on its knees typing. It glanced, eyes flicking from face, to hands wiping the droplets of water on their still bare chest and shoulders, then face again.

"Seriously, _pullito_ , locking a computer when you live alone?"

"Only pray thinks their alone," Pidge answered voice a notch higher with mirth. They expected a frustrated groan but was far more pleased with Sombra muttered something in a fond Spanish. "Sit, legs up please, lil' _malu._ "

Sombra plopped down, metal feet in the air so Pidge could measure their size and glue on small rubber soles. The silence was familiar and comforting. The chatter of Sombra's keyboard and the hum of fans. The hiss of a can broke it and Pidge locked up, scissors nicking fingers.

"Woops, sorry." Sombra sneered unapologetically. Pidge only rolled their eyes, sucking on the cut until the glue set. "Your fans are thirsty _, pullito_." The projector, that Mushu couldn't get working, in its chest lit up, showing a chatroom with pictures upon pictures of Drifters earlier that day.

Latin dance was sensual but Pidge never saw it as overtly sexual but they rarely ever do, so the comments on them was just a little surprising. But then the conversation derailed from guessing who Pidgin was to just wishing which Drifter would ben them over a desk or crush with their thighs.

Then Sombra showed another picture that felt like a wave crashed down on Pidge. A photo of the opening act, Lynx and Mar dancing, the omnic's hand creasing their throat and hips, Mar's own fingers catching their shirt and rising it up a little high that caused a near riot in the chat.

_K, bout how about some love for the small Drifter? I'd love to bend her over and scream. Yall watch her speech at the end? THAT ACCENT THO <3 <3\. How about against the wall choked out and drooling? Fuck, I'd pay good shit to be that omnic. Nice ass, not too thin, not too fat the best kind of love handles, tits a lil small for me, the augments are sexy, 12/10 would jerk off again. Her names Maristela Rōzeki! She has a-_

Sombra swiped to the next drifter. If Pidgin wasn't hyperaware of themselves, the streamer would have made a horrified face. The only comforting thought was that they were lurkers in their streams and Sombra's taunt or chiding remarks. Then she researched their official livestream, muting the recording and just scrolling through the chat.

At one point even the MEKA squad started guessing. Tall and muscular, so popular and so, _so_ off the mark. Sombra chuckled taking sips of her soda. "Not even the MEKA kids _know you_ , eh?" The hacker asked finally growing bored and waving the projection off.

"Difficult to know a mask in the ocean." Pidge said, picking the little bot up and setting them down on the workbench. "Code _pau_? Tell me if I need to add some rubber to the fingers."

" _Sí_." Sombra muttered waving them off. Pidgin watched for a moment, making sure the little bot didn't fall or spontaneously spark and combust. Sombra instructed it to pick things up and practice unscrewing whatever was on the bench.

Satisfied Pidge wrapped their hair up and finally slipped on some clothes. Scarf, sleeveless shirt… maybe their arms is the reason everyone thought Pidgin had a popular body type.

" _¿Qué es esto?_ "  
** What's this?

"Hoverboard, some hard-light technology installed to change it into a surfboard or-" Drifter Rig, but that would bring up too many questions Sombra could answer… But at this rate she'll just cross reference her own height with the drifter rooster. A lot of Shallow Type are shorter than Sombra but she was watching when Pidge got the augments, there isn't a lot of short Drifters with spinal and chest augments. Fuck even the gills could have given them away years ago.

So Pidge just shrugged their shoulders, " _Da kine._ " The input must be directly from Sombra's brain or at least mimic her body, the way the shoulders slumped, the way the head lolled back to throw a flat stare over her shoulder triggered another flashback.

_"Dude! I'm fine."_

_"No me jodas!" Sombra hissed under her breath. She stopped body tense as she turn to pounce but then her eyes lingered on a store. Something in Sombra broke, her shoulders went slack and head rolled back to glare at Pidge. "No se mueva." Sombra said, then walked into the store.  
_**Do not fuck with me. Don't move.

_Pidgin rolled their eyes. How many times had Sombra barked that phrase during a mission before they ran off sneaking inches behind a guard. It was the exact number of times Pidgin obeyed._

_"Pullito," Sombra called waving a double popsicle in their face. It was already melting but the cool air was a relief against the summer evening. "Both for_ I'm fine _. One for I'm sorry for being a lil' bitch, I beg for your forgiveness, you're so kind and wonderful Sombra!"_

_By the time the hacker finished Pidgin's face was red, knuckles white and arms were trembling with a strength that could knock out men twice their size. And the same thing that broke in Sombra broke in Pidgin too._

_Pidge grabbed one popsicle._

"You were always better with your hands," Sombra snorted trying to peal a panel back but the bot couldn't get any friction to hold the grip and it fell with a loud clang each time. Pidge chuckled and let Sombra wait and curse and Pidgin enjoyed the empty threats to break the hoverboard as they finished dressing.

They tossed the towel into the hamper and brushed hair out of their face, static sparked through their fingertips, the invisible dye held the charge and glowing gradient of soft blue hummed at through their hair.

"Huh, I always wondered about that." Sombra muttered softly. They got the rubber and glue from their desk, made sure to block Sombra's line of sight before logging in and returning to the hacker's new bot.

She was sitting on the edge of the desk, small metal legs swinging. It was shockingly adorable, literally, despite the small pain flaring between metal plates Pidge smiled. When Pidge was near she held up the bots hands and wiggled small metal fingers. The drifter smiled and held them still to glue on rubber pads.

"Fix my translocator when you get back to Castillo," She said. The typing in the background was gone, replaced with metal rubbing against each other or wood.

"Compensate me for LumériCo and I'll think about it." They said and shortly after a tingle shot down their spine. This time Pidge couldn't hide the flinch as a the shock heated metal before fading.

"Pidge?"

"… Actually maybe soon-ish. Whenever I can leave for a few months," Pidgin muttered taking a sharp breath. "Inhibitor's all humbug- oh um… _no está bien_."  
**Not good.

Sombra's bot flinched sympathetically, " _Ay!_ I'll tell Cyan so she can get things ready-"A soft ringing from Pidge's computer cut her off.

"Call from D.Mon." Their computer chirped.

Pidge stood up, picking up Sombra's bearbot and setting her off camera and on their bed. They gave her a warning look but refused to say anything. Sombra would only take it as a challenge. The bot rolled its head and omnic eyes but stayed still for the time being.

The drifter threw a piece of gum into their mouth, answered with a casual "Sup, Beast." but was greeted with a scowl that was a little more heated than Yuna's default face. Pidge's taunting smile slowly fell. D.Mon had five expressions: neutral, slightly happy, and the rest was various degrees of mad, despite what Hana tells them. Right now it's one of the worse kinds of mad, the kind that leaks through even when you're trying to drown it down.

"Not our manager's mood." D.Mon said almost like a bark. "You just sided with a terrorist organization! If we weren't in MEKA it wouldn't be a problem but me and Hana are soldiers now." Pidge sighed softly, glancing away as a mix of emotions rolled through. Guilt, frustration, then curiosity when they saw Sombra jump from their bed to the desk. "We can't- Command wants to classify you as a threat and-"

Sombra's bot jumped up into the camera and clinging to the top of their monitor, " _Hola!_ " D.Mon _screamed,_ flying herself back and possibly tumbling out of the chair. Pidge slapped a hand over their mouth so fast it hurt a little while Sombra sneered and preened in satisfaction. "Are soldiers supposed to be cowards?" The hacker asked jumping off the monitor. Pidgin couldn't answer, could barely hear the question over a fit of laughter.

There was a racket somewhere in the MEKA base, yelling through the walls and sound of hydraulic doors opening. Hana walked in wearing her pilot suit and esports jersey. She helped D.Mon onto their feet and they spoke in Korean, until her attention returned to the camera.

"Pidge, _anyoung haseyo!"  
_**Good evening

The drifter sniffled their laughter and soft chuckles, combing their damp gradient blue hair back and out of their face, " _Aloha_ , D.Va."

"Didn't know you could dance, the flash mob was amazing..." Hana's voice drifted off as Sombra's bot climbed up Pidge's shirt. "Oh you got your friend's gift working!"

"Pff, I fixed my own damn present. _Pullito_ practically has a doctorate in dance but they can't code to save a life," Sombra said. They rolled their eyes, popping their gum at the bot. Eventually Pidge did help it, setting the little thing on their shoulder. But it didn't settle there, instead the bot kept moving to half hug, half rest atop Pidge's head.

The change was subtle but reading people was their thing, both as Mar and Pidgin. As soon as Hana realized someone else was controlling the bot her eyes light up with energy, smile was a little wider and voice was higher. The augments helped them sense the stress behind the mask.

"It's Violet right?" Pidge felt Sombra glare and they hid their smile by blowing a bubble. D.Va continued, the enthusiasm almost sounding genuine, "Whenever Pidge talks about themselves they always mention you."

Pidge felt like an anchor was tied to their feet and they were slowly being pulled down. They didn't let it show. Instead Pidgin focused on breathing, keeping the electric current in their veins at bay instead of the rapid churning in their gut.

At least until Sombra's bot gave them a coy glance, the way the shoulders shifted and held tilt carried so much across the ocean. She pushed it even further with a smirk transforming her voice into a low thick purr with only one damn syllable, "Oh?"

"Yeah! You should join us when we aren't streaming sometime!"

Sombra chuckled, "I'll have to check my schedule. I have a _big_ project at the end of the month."

D.Va sighed but agreed, "Okay, Command wants us running drills anyway. Come on, Yuna." A lie, it wasn't Command it was Hana's own drive.

"… Sure thing." D.Mon muttered, hard soldier eyes on Pidge before. No doubt they'll be hearing from MEKA's Beast later. Hopefully it'll be after they get things sorted with Sombra. The pair bid farewell and ended the video call.

Sombra chuckled, bot jumping down from their head and onto the monitor. The bot crossed their legs, ideally looking at nails that weren't there. How much is that movement conscious, how much of it is synced with Sombra's body? "What would your friends think if they knew _who you really are_?" The hacker asked.

It wasn't an empty threat, their game wouldn't be fun if it was.

Pidge smiled and the numbness that spread across their chest was welcoming. Pidgin gets to entertain whatever they got from their mother's blood, whatever the inhibitors try to keep dormant. Mar tames it when they are suited up and scavenging on the ocean floor.

The high hit them like a hundred foot wave crashing down and dragging them to the dark ocean, where they couldn't predict what was coming next.

"Probably the same things Los Muertos would think of you if LumériCo, Vishkar _and_ Helix would were to drop on Castillo." Sombra's dark chuckled sent Pidge's fight or flight into overdrive, confusing it. Pidge wanted to run but not away. How much was a flight to Mexico again?

"And here I thought the years in _los paraíso_ soften you up."

"You have no idea what Drifters deal with, do you?"

"Send me footage so I can find out," Sombra said with a chuckle. Pidge didn't answer, they both new they weren't going to. Sombra's mic and Pidge's augmented ears picked up the clicking keyboard again. "I'm sending you the schematics of my translocator."

"Brah, no be chang! The ARG crashed me big time!"  
** Dude, don't be cheap! The ARG set me back by a lot!

"I'll help you pay off the upgrades, that should be enough for both jobs," The hacker said waving the bot's arms. "Who knows, maybe I'll get you some replacement parts until then. You know how Cyan is. _Dasvidanya, pullito_." The bot shut off, slumping against the desk.

Pidge rolled their eyes, carrying it to their nightstand as they rested in bed for a few minutes. "Mushu, any important emails?" They asked. With their augments they saw a digital dragon working on the corner of their vision. Soon a few emails popped up, all from Vishkar.

The deadline for the sculpture was moved from the end of the month to the middle, Ms. Vaswani was now their partner. Vishkar was also demanding schematics to the Manta rig. Pidge laughed a little, only those with advance neural augments like themselves and Sombra would be able to use it.

 


	2. sinking in the drift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Violence  
> cameos  
> secret life shenanigans

_10:00 HST. Pidgin Live! Asústame, Panteón!_

D.Mon: again with the spanish…  
King: !translate Asústame, Panteón!  
Mushubot: Spanish. Show me what you've got!  
D.Mon: so far what we got is a black screen. I'm out

The chat talked amongst themselves for a few minutes. The rest of the MEKA squad trying their best to answer questions. None of them knew who Pidgin is or what this stream is about. For the last time yes, Pidgin coached D.Mon and D.Va during the season they won the championship.

Then there was a crackling audio, muffled explosions and the sound of things moving underwater. "These aren't offensive units." The stream heard Mar say. The video flickered to life everything a tint of green and all sources of light shining a bright white, sand and metal bits kicked up everywhere as machines clashed and jetted around.

The camera tried to focus on a blur of movement that spanned just a few seconds. A manta-like figure dancing just out of reach of metal coils. Each twisting and turning, until finally the manta twisted, a 180 turn below metal tentacles. There was a streak of white as a plasma hot tail pierced and cut the omnic.

It twitched wildly, coils wrapping tight around large metal arms but grew weak the power core sparked in the ocean. The camera got a closer. The omnic was a horrible mix of scraps and rusted metal. Sparks crackled along the floor, exposed wire and tangled seaweed trailing behind it as seven eyes blinked before fading.

The face of the Drifters wasn't in a mech, an armored suit, Mar didn't even wear googles. They wore a wetsuit with slits along their ribs and back for their augments. The rig was housed on their torso, connected to the metal grafted deep in their flesh. A hard-light mask covered their nose and mouth, oxygen tubs running into it.

Mar pulled the loose coils off their arms, small dents where the omnic held them. "They're repair drones. Tentacles were able to dented my rig so be careful."

"Tentacles…" another Drifter muttered. The kraken omnics swirled around in  mass, vastly out numbering them but already five floated and sparked along the floor. "I bet they're from Asia."

Mar sputtered, jerking away from their examination on the omnic and glaring at the Orca mech, "Mom!" The other drifters only sighed or laughed. Mar groaned, "Gods please purge the sin in my blood for they are passed from my ancestors."

"Oh shut up, it's true- _Yamero!"_ Orca yelled tackled by one of those machines. Metal screech and sparks started to light the dark ocean as it squeezed. A joint collapsed, arm floating loosely by wires. Orca angled her back to a sharp panel jutting from the ocean floor and then her boosters were on full blast. There was odd screech of not just metal against metal but a synthetic scream. "Thanks for the help!"  
**Get off!

Mar hummed with a gentle laugh, "And interfere with the swift justice from a higher power? Rather unwise, besides you had worse things try and kill you." They turned, palms up and shining bright. Spears shot out, impaling two omnics as they lunged. The water slowed them down just a few feet from the Manta, they pulled the spears out. "Easy. I'm heading back. Vishkar moved my deadline."

"Told you that Sombra mural was a bad idea-" Orca was cut off by swift metal darted for the surface. "Mar their running!"

They quickly aimed only for another kraken omnic to tackle them. The photon projector stalled and powered down, energy directed into their tail to cut the omnic in pieces.

"Damn it, Whiptail with me! We can't let them hit the Shallows!"

"Roger!" The largest mech disengaged from several targets and shot towards the surface.

The drone struggled to keep up and eventually there was just several minutes of black screen. The chat talked amongst themselves, comparing the Drifters to MEKA. Then they swayed to the Junkers of Australia but the talk kept revolving around the Manta rig, and the name Dr. Maristela Rōzeki kept popping up. Highest success rate, a Vishkar Architech specializing in sculptures, lived with an adopted family until her early adulthood, 25 yrs old-

Casino: let's not get all stan pls  
Overlord: Pidgin's stream is hacked  
Overlord: the time is wrong, it's 8:42 in Hawaii  
Mushubot: Overlord permaban. Reason: _no es divertido_  
King: !translate no es divertido  
Mushubot: Spanish. No fun  
Mushubot: King permaban. Reason: annoying

While the chat exploded with worry the camera returned. The drone was above the beach, night vision off and filming the panic in color. The crowd screamed as swimmers struggle to get out of the water. On the surface there was a kraken omnic, wrapped around a drifter and squeezing tighter and tighter until metal and bones collapsed, oil and blood seeped into the water.

"Angel!" Mar screamed surging out of the water. They grabbed the omnic's head. A spear shot through and the omnic slowly went limp, grip spasming and drawing screams. Mar gently pulled metal away when a stranger's low growl alerted them.

"Behind you!" A metal hook went wailing past. Mar had seconds to pull themselves and Angel out of the way. The hulking junker on shore easily lifted another omnic, and slammed it down. The force cracking rusted metal, his boot and massive weight crushing the rest.

Mar headed towards the man but more omnics were surfacing, "Can you get to shore?"

"Y-Yeah…" Angel muttered weakly.

Two spears shot out from Mar's photon projectors, a wall of net catching the omnics that tried to grab a child. "All Shallows, stay out of the water get a perimeter up!" Manta shouted, voice booming across the beach due to hidden speakers or their augments. Whiptail surged out of the water, his serpentine mech coiling around an omnic and crushing it.

It was under control for a few minutes. Then a swarm escaped from the abyss and tore down Whiplash's mech. In a desperate move Mar scanned Whiplash's cannons and quickly sculpted from hard-light. Mar wasn't in a mech, the augments and rig enhanced their strength but they could barely move with the large cannon on their shoulder.

It was a weapon made to be used in freezing waters, the first shot nearly overloaded their systems and it left their ears ringing. The second just numbed their body and the third made them drop into the water to cool off-

The screen went black again, the chat erupting demanding the video back. What they got was a very pissed off digital dragon. "Protocols updated. Firewall re-enabled. King, unban. Overlord, unban." the AI spoke in a fluctuating pattern similar to Pidgin. "Hackers, would you kindly fuck off."

_10:15am. HST. Pidgin Offline._

Pidge was on the edge of blacking out, the pain so overwhelming it was numbing all their senses. In-between muted screams and sobs they panted, never able to catch their breath as the blood in the water shifted to gray. They closed their eyes and would see Sombra's tattoos glowing brightly.

Her skin was cold and wet clothes stuck to her skin. A loud noise rang in Cyan's body shop. The fresh cybernetics flared and processed the information to fast for Pidge's brain to handle. Both their own and Sombra's heartbeat lit every sense on fire. A whimper was torn out of them, and they burred their head into Sombra's neck.

Cold hands and melting ice pressed against the augments near Pidge's ears, easing the pain until Pidge was too tired to hold on so tightly. Sombra's running ice over the fresh metal at the back of their head.

Sombra's soft sigh and empathetic tone calmed them down a little, _"Ay, pobrecito…"_

"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts…"

"It'll pass," Sombra said softly. She adjusted the both of them so the cold shower could hit Pidge's back. Pidge could only scream and hold on tighter, gasping as the ice slowly slide down their bleeding spin and heated metal. "You need to stay awake, _pullito, y_ ou're doing good."

Pidge groaned and cried. Their voice distorting, with every beat the numbness lasted longer until Sombra and the cold tub was gone. "I just… want to sleep."

_"Mwen prèske fè."_

"He's almost done, _pullito."_ The ringing in their ears grew, distorting Sombra's voice into a deeper, electronic tone. "Just the inhibitor left."

Then reality nearly swallowed Pidge, sudden vertigo- the softness of their bed threatening to suffocate them. The water was gone, the tub was gone. The hand on their back was wider, more scars than callous than Cyan's fingers had and not soft like Sombra's.

Panicked they tried to turn but a firm hand pressed them back onto the mattress and something clicked into the base of their skull. All the energy pent up in them rushed up to their head. It felt like lightning, nerves flaring off in their body all at once- hot, hot and burning so tight they couldn't breathe. Black faded into grey blobs and slowly Pidge was looking down at a man that they threw off them.

They just sat there, too tired and dazed to attack so the man slowly moved to sit up and Pidge let him. Sombra's chuckle stopped them from pouncing again. Her voice easing Pidge as the man helped them back onto the bed.

They chatted like old friends but it took a few minutes for Pidge to ground themselves to the bot now sitting in their lap. There was a comforting rhythm in the way Sombra kicked the bots legs.

For a few minutes Pidge closed their eyes, enjoying Sombra's voice and the medic's deep laugh. His name was Baptiste and the pair meet after Pidge left Mexico. Despite being a stranger Sombra's presence and his kindness almost made him feel familiar.

It's been a few weeks since the LumériCo hack and a few days since Lynx tracked Sombra to their neighborhood. When Sombra couldn't connect to the bot she sent Baptiste to look for them.

"After the attack I fried my inhibitor. Ditched my rig and ran back here but I don't remember turning on Arturo or crashing in the tub." Pidge muttered so softly that the voice modulator struggled a little. The hacker named their new toy after her teddy bear no doubt.

Sombra looked up, omnic eyes squinting and Pidge could only imagine she was frowning. "How's your head?" She asked, frustration bleeding through the mic. "I… I can't access your systems. You got trapped for a while but your neural implants seem okay."

"It wasn't bad…" Pidge answered. Sombra rolled her eyes, shoulders slumping in the way she knew Pidge was lying. It was a complicated memory, not good but still one of their favorites. "It was when I first got my implants."

Sombra hummed. They imagined her lips were probably pressed into a thin line when she's trying to make a decision without enough information. She let it go with a huff, "You good to shower?" Sombra asked.

When Pidge gave a slow nod the little bot jumped off their lap. Pidge stripped their wetsuit- giving Baptiste and Sombra a tired smirk when the man choked on his drink, and closed the bathroom door behind them.

"You strip in front of us but don't- _Me da igual!"_ She grumbled.  
**I don't care

Pidge laughed softly. They took their time in the shower, discovering bruises and cuts from the few omnics that manage to throw them around. The right side of their torso was tender, areas closest to Whiplash's cannon an angry red, that stung even with the softest of clothes.

Sombra's bot threw their shirt back at their face, " _Pullito,_ you are _not_ bare titty-ing it while we're here!" Pidgin gave a dramatic roll of their eyes, gasping when something in their neck popped into place.

Despite a new face watching the two from the kitchen, Pidge draped the shirt over the Arturo bot and continued to lounge on their bed, gently toweling their hair in nothing but short-shorts, "Dude, no speak if you no live here." Sombra grumbled and threw it off diving into their closet and drawers.

The hacker ignored them and threw their clothes about. Then the tiny bot jumped onto the bed with them holding a sweater, "Found it! You're bringing this when you come back."

Pidge grabbed it and immediately noticed the missing back. They couldn't help but to laugh, "I get attack by fucking tentacle omnics and now you want me to wear this?" The bot and the hacker controlling it only nodded without shame.

"Hmm… If they really were _fucking_ tentacle omnics I'm pretty sure your viewer count would have surpassed D.Va's."

Viewer… count. Pidge's dressing slowed to a crawl, eyes slowly growing wide. A quick flick of their hands brought up a cyan monitor. Various messages from MEKA asking what the hell was going on, then giving a summary of their hacked stream. The only message they got from Overlord was an 'I told you so'. Several angry messages from Mushu cursing out Pidge's hacker friends and ravings about a headache.

Another flick, another monitor but this one was filled with windows of several media platforms. The clips and gifs of the fight were viral thanks to D.Va and Casino. More reasonable members of the MEKA squad, Overlord and D.Mon, was slowly taming the flood of questions but D.Va wasn't interested in calming the crowd.

"The Sombra Collective should hack the cameras for my next movie," Pidge read, mimicking D.Va's animated voice. It got Baptiste laughing but Sombra groaned loudly into their ears. They were going to tune the voice modulator to sound like Busan's star but instead their eyes went wide. "I wouldn't mind riding with these Drifters either…"

Sombra draped over their good shoulder and hummed. The other manipulator saw the strings Hana was pulling and Pidge couldn't help the proud grin spreading across their face. "Debunking my connection with you _and_ manipulating public opinion to give you a chance to get to Busan." They felt the Arturo bot shrug, "Not bad for a child- Ah shit, hold on."

A soft raspy voice was came through the mic, "Sombra, do you have the schematics for Volskaya Industries yet?"

"Got it hours ago but its years out of date, trying to get a current layout now," She said to someone else projecting a file to her partner. Pidge frowned at the bot but didn't miss the way Baptiste tensed. Just a little crinkle between his brows and a pinch in his shoulders. Involuntary reaction based history, but he relaxed to fast and to calmly for it to be completely negative.

Sombra rolled the omnic's eyes when they refused to touch it. " _Pullito_ , even if there was a virus in the file your pet AI would catch it." A soft question of who Sombra was talking to went ignored on her end.

"His name is Mushu and he isn't a pet," Pidge muttered absentmindedly reaching for a candy or gum to chew on. They waited till the hacker wiggled the screen a little to explain, "LumériCo, your translocator, now this? I ain't free, _niña_." That was a lie Pidge perfected years ago.

"I got you new parts and saved you're life!"

Pidge scoffed, laughing so hard Sombra's little bot was almost thrown off and the sensitive skin nearly ripped and bled, "Baptiste saved my life-"

"You're welcome!" Baptiste chirped happily in Pidge's kitchen.

"And what _you_ got us a date with a death who takes on the form of a hot blonde named Cyan." The drifter continued.

Sombra huffed but their arm dropped and voice was in a pout, "We're her favorite project, Cyan ain't gonna kill us."

Pidge stared. They made a show of holding the hard candy between their teeth and slowly cracking it,  "And that's what worries me."

" _Bien!_ How about this?" Sombra projected a photo of Ms. Vaswani, "I'll get you the schematics for her arm. That way you can finish your hoverboard, maybe design a few upgrades for yourself." The hacker practically sang into their ears.

Ms. Vaswani's was Vishkar's top architech, her arm was a prototype and specially designed for the women. They were already pissed at Mar for redesigning the photon projector for their rig, and the persona has been banned from the development department since.

Pidge gave a hard look into the bot's eyes, "The newest model."

The hacker agreed, "Fresh out of shop." Pidge accepted the file before Sombra finished, colors switching as it passed to the drifter.

They tossed the file exploding into a million lines of code, constructing a holograph of Volskya Industries. Pidge laughed, "Talk about archaic! Looks a little Swedish and German, very boxy, streamline." They walked through the structures, causing some buildings to glitch. Picking one up they enlarged it, turning it left and right with a critical eye.

Vishkar didn't have much on Russian architecture, they were too busy fighting a war to think to worry about a design that optimized production and security.

In a flick a keyboard hovered under their fingertips, a screen floating over nearby. "Searching international German companies with partnerships with Sweden, both requiring militant history." A list slowly ran down the screen. "Filtering activity in Russia…" The list narrowed to five though Pidge swiped the first and last away. The first is always a target and the last never made the cut.

The holographic city flickered off as Pidge picked up Sombra's Arturo bot and carried it to the kitchen counter. Baptiste made himself comfortable during the show, settling in with a plate of leftovers. The bot was oddly stiff as typing drowned out some chatter.

Sombra quickly went over the list of three. "Hacking… Blueprints download." Another file appeared in the bots hand and this time Pidge took it without hesitation.

A delighted smile spread across their face, growing with Sombra's chuckle. It was the schematics for Ms. Vaswani's arm, updated just a two days ago, "Always a pleasure, Sombra."

Baptiste scoffed a little, "That's a first." The two bickered a little while Pidge laughed and rested against the counter. Arturo had a comfortable weight on their shoulder but Sombra's arm would be better.

\---

Mar didn't get a good look at the damage from the fight yesterday but Jelly and Angel found clips of what happen and was morbidly fascinated with them. It always started as Mar broke the surface of the water, the screaming seemed to last forever and finally ended with that man hooking the omnic away.

They both jumped at the hard snapping of the candy Mar was suckling on. "I understand the fascination but please stop watching it." Mar said quietly.

They both hummed but Angel was… still trying to take in a missing arm. She'd gesture or grab for something and then stare for a few seconds before settling in silently.

The doctors removed it last night while Pidgin was laughing with Baptiste and Sombra. Mar growled at themselves, "I… I'm sorry, I don't know what to say."

"Please don't say 'I could have done more' because I'll believe you," Jelly said, the stare coldly leveled with Mar. It was the most challenging and hostile glare they got but it was cute compared to Los Muertos. "And throw you out the window, or something."

"… I'd probably live." Mar said casually with a shrug, "The impact can't be worse than the weight of the ocean."

"Mar…" The two other drifters groaned. The monitor filled the room with a few heartbeats before Angel huffed. "I wish more people were like you," She blurted out. Mar winced the sweet they were used to now ice, "Vishkar and Helix came in offering a contract and a new arm. Barely let me breath!"

"And a random man," Jelly said smoothing out the near imaginary wrinkles of his shirt. "He's coming back with a few prosthetics he could spare but it'll need some modifications for the water and such."

"What's the price?" Mar frowned, arms crossed under their chest.

"Right?" Angel said laughed, "He said just wants to help when he can. A real sweetheart."

"Oh honey, he was beyond sweet," Jelly hummed with a blissful sigh and lick of his lips. "But back to equally pleasant company," He looked at Mar who played mock offense. The pair got an honest laugh from Angel even if she winced a little in pain. "What about you?"

Their doctor said everything Baptiste had told them the night before. "Minor burns from Whiplash's cannon, gave me stuff to avoid scars and…" Mar scowled briefly, it was cold and harder than it should have been in this persona but hopefully the glasses soften it. "Minor decompression sickness."

Both Jelly and Angel did a double take, giving the most famous face of the Drifters a doubtful expression. Mar tapped the metal Baptiste put on their face, "Replaced the bad parts," Mostly. "The rest of my team is trying to finish our shift." Angler and Goblin should be able to handle it on their own. The weakest links were the only humans, Mar and their mother. But the lack of information and control-

"Relax, Mar. You're making me tense," Angel said with a sigh. Mar made a noise out of reflex but it took  several minutes for the drifter to calm down enough to look at the pair. "Your team has the highest success rate, they'll be fine."

Because Mar was there. The drifter didn't say anything only hummed again easing into the chair. Jelly laughed softly, "I told you'd, that they'd be all pouty."

"I'm not-"

A gentle knock on the door cut Mar's sulking, " _Alo!"_ Baptiste said. Mar went a little stiff, hyperaware of themselves as they turned around. The humanitarian had that same warm smile Pidge woke up too, a faint bruise from where they punched them yesterday and metal suitcase that was not for folders.

And on his shoulders was a plotting little gremlin. Pidge turned the Arturo bot off every time they'd had to leave Sombra alone for more than three minutes. Getting out of the apartment was a little victory for the hacker in the game they play.

" _Hola._ " Sombra's voice sang. Low and thick in the way that made Pidge shiver. Luckily Sombra was still across the ocean and only speaking through her bot, though Mar's palms might be sweating.

"I told you that cute little omnic would cheer them up," Angel stage whispered to Jelly. Mar huffed throwing a glare over their shoulder and the pair only giggled. "Mar this is Jean Augustin and… Violet. I think."

"Dr. Rōzeki, a pleasure!" Baptiste said offering a hand. Mar took it, conscious of the power and weight of their handshake. Gentle, they reminded themselves, Mar was gentle where Pidge was a hammer. "You're research on omnic psychology is fascinating."

Mar's heart beat slow and hard. They pretended to shyly fix their jacket, adjusting it to hid their augments. There was a reason Pidge didn't show them off on stream and they could only hope the glasses distracted Baptiste from noticing the familiar metal on their cheek. Sombra… hopefully the omnic eyes couldn't pick up such small details.

"Please call me Mar." The drifter said. "Thank you for taking your time to look into my research, though… not many in your generation would agree with you." They were all orphans after all.

Baptiste hid his surprise better than the reporters, the smile not faltering like it did in Pidge's apartment and recognition didn't flicker over his face. Mar would relax but Sombra knew how to pick Pidge apart, and those purple eyes wouldn't leave them, "Your books are good enough to make it too Oasis. Who cares what people think."

Mar snapped their jaw, crushing the hard candy into bits. "They're meant to bridge omnics and humans, it's all about what people think-" Mar's mouth snapped shut at Sombra's giggling and Jelly's lout snickering. They glanced away, crushing the candy to dust and throwing a new one into their mouth. They took a slow breath and ignore the soft heat on their cheeks, "Shut up…"

Baptiste chuckled stepping in and opening the suitcase at the foot of Angel's bed. "Here are some of the prosthetics I promised."

Mar immediately recognized the Overwatch design. The white and blue, sleek metal, almost as organic as Vishkar but combat kept things mechanical and bulky.

Angel looked at Mar the smile friendly but somehow offending, "How mad would you be if I took Ziegler's prosthetic over O'Deorain?"

Mar frowned, a stoic and professional look at the women it'd least effect. "Spite is a poor basis for decision making," Mar grumbled. Angel smirked and Mar made a small show of rolling their eyes and rolling the hard candy in a way that brushed their tongue pricing against their lips. "But for ethics sake, remember that good doctors wouldn't want their medicine to be used as poison."

Angel huffed angrily, almost growling at them as their hands moved from Zieglar's design to O'Deorain. As Angel looked at O'Deorain's work, Mar picked up Ziegler's prosthetic. They could see their eyes glowing bright in the polish, repainted metal. Augments picking up dents and scratches. A scan and a few seconds later the model and schematics popped up in Mar's lower left vision.

Baptiste shuffled, his easy demeanor now a little nervous. "Ah… you are familiar with Dr. Ziegler's work?"

"Familiar enough. I know more of O'Deorain's ethics than either of their medical work." Mar answered. Sombra's eyes was still watching the performance… The drifter didn't see a reason to hide their smirk. Mar raised a finger to their lips stepping closer as if whispering a secret. "There's a reason I'm on Vishkar's naughty list."

The bot flinched. Somewhere in the world the hacker loudly inhaled her soda and tried coughing it up. Angel's heart monitor in the room slowly speed up. She mumbled an excuse that was too fast to be heard, and the two men could only laughed. Mar giggled softly behind a hand, "And now I'm leaving before Angel chokes me with one hand."

"You'll probably enjoy it," Angel scoffed. Mar only smiled and bid the four goodbye.

Back at Pidge's apartment the drifter made sure to burry Mar's clothes in the hamper and double check the apartment and appearance.

Their glowing eyes scanned for Sombra's cameras or other bugs but found nothing. Off camera Pidge could afford to show off the augments, so they slipped into another backless top and some shorts.

There was only two things that could connect Mar and Pidge. The augments and the flash mob protest weeks ago.


	3. changing tides

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Violence  
> Sombra being a brat

_Sombra's weight on their shoulders was burning. Pidge bit back a groan and the hacker only chuckled. Sweat was dripping off her and onto Pidge's neck and shoulders. Her hands were gentle and warm as they slid through the matted pixie cut and-_

_"Aagh…" Pidge's knees buckled a shiver running down their spine. Their heart skipped a few beats as those soft fingers traced the sensitive skin and new metal. Sombra's hand pulled back and Pidge bit back a whine. "It- It didn't hurt."_

_Sombra leaned over their shoulder, mohawk a flopping in the Mexico's summer heat. They didn't look doubtful or worried. She just carefully observed their face, "Cyan said it'll take a two weeks to heal. It's only been a few days."_

_"I heal fast." Pidge said quickly, leaning their head back trying to rub against Sombra's hands. Instead the hacker chuckled, tattooed arms wrapping around their neck and snuggling. Sweat smeared across both their bodies then their skin stuck together. The heat almost suffocating Pidge. "Sombra!"_

_"Just up the hill- Ay!" The local gasped and laughed. Sombra nearly fell off when the drifter suddenly sprinted the last few yards. They dropped Sombra onto the bench and fell beside her sprawled out in an attempt to cool off._

_Only Sombra sat on their lap, swim shorts not protecting them from the heat of the hacker's body. Those burning hands splayed onto their stomach, tracing the near sculpted muscle with less than innocent fascination. The touch was firm, pressing sweat back into their skin._

_Pidge nearly cried, heart speeding up and a different kind of heat rolling across their body. They'd enjoy it more if they weren't in the damn sun._

_"Sombra…" They growled again. "It's hot."_

_"Usually people worry about being in public…" Her hands wandered higher, thumbs toying with the idea of sliding under the bikini top. She immediately pulled back, gasping as electricity crawled from Pidge to Sombra. "Muy bien, okay. Just wait a minute." She hopped off Pidge and to a nearby shop._

_Pidge closed their eyes and opened them that hot weight appeared on their shoulder minutes later. Sombra had a double popsicle and a flatten cardboard under their hand._

_"Loser pays for the movies tonight." Sombra grinned._

_Pidge sneered. It was simple physics, the drifter was small but heavier, almost built like an ox. Sure Sombra was fit from the gang life but she also sat on the computer for hours living on energy drinks._

_Pidge took their half of the popsicle and stole a large bite out of Sombra's. "Deal!"_

Pidge blinked awake a damn towel blocking their vision until they slowly sat up. The bot was laying on their chest and slid down to their lap. For a moment Arturo's metal face was alien, so different from the coy smirk and bright smiles. Maybe they'll repaint Sombra's skeletal tattoos.

"Dreaming about me?" Her voice purred.

Pidge struggled to breath, gills and lungs trying to take in oxygen at the same time. They cleared their throat, tuning the voice modulator. "I dreamt you were suffocating me." It came out with an obvious struggle that made Sombra giggle. Pidge falling back into bed. Sombra complained, having Arturo jump on their chest a little.

"Get up! I've been waiting for you to work on the hoverboard all morning!"

"How sweet," Pidge mumbled and yawned. They closed their eyes, trying to imagine Sombra's body instead of the tiny bot but instead the humid air of Mexico's summer and bright sun flared across their body. With a groan they got out of bed gasping as the burnt skin stretch and pulled.

Arturo trotted off, returning the with the cream the doctors gave them a few days ago. "Careful. Scars are hot an all but it'll make the game way to easy."

\---

Arturo's weight on their good shoulder was as familiar as the pinched nerves in their back. Easy to ignore, impossible to forget, and always subconsciously looking for it.

Pidge was still trying to figure out _how_ Sombra controlled Arturo. When the hacker was focused on something on her end the bot would go stiff and sometimes freeze altogether. What did it look like while Sombra was focused through the bot?

"This will overheat." Purple omnic eyes narrowed at them. They cut from Pidge to the board then to Pidge again, "Are you… here?" Sombra asked, voice an odd mix of tense and gentle.

The Drifter hummed, popping their gum. Their eyes continued to study Arturo and Sombra. It took several pokings for the hacker to get a satisfying answer, "Yes, yes, 'lil _malu._ Just thinking."

Arturo relaxed, a low chuckle warming the weight on Pidge's shoulder. "Careful, pullito, your neurals might overheat." Pidge smiled and rolled their eyes, blowing a bubble at the bot. They got comfortable, half kneeling but still completely hunched over the workbench. Sombra hummed and shifted a part, "As I was saying, this is gonna overheat, not to mention the power problem."

"Hm…" Pidge sighed. They spent so much time in freezing water they purposely overclocked their augments to keep warm. "Yeah. You right."

"Do it anyway."

The pair was finishing the first prototype of Pidge's hoverboard. Pidge had scrapped many ideas for this project but Sombra found the list and worked out all the faults by adding her own wants.

The main idea was the same. Hard-light technology in the form of a longboard to rebuild the Manta rig wherever the drifter needed it. Previously it was only limited to the rig but Sombra had other plans. She turned it into a scanner, an extension to Pidge's spinal augments, a proper photon projector-

Whatever Sombra needed Pidgin to be.

The lights turned on, "I'm back-"

"Aagh!" Pidge screamed, jumping off the workbench and spinning around so fast Arturo nearly flung across the room. Baptiste jumped. Sombra groaned, and Arturo swayed in a way that could only mimic real life ragdoll.

" _Qué putas pasa!"  
**What the fuck!_

Their arms wrapped around the bot, instincts to cradle the hacker overriding the reality that she wasn't actually there. "Sorry, Sombra," Pidge murmured. Their fast beating heart heated their face as they took the bot from Baptiste and set her back on their shoulder. "Baptiste scared the shit out of me."

The medic only gave a shrug, "I can only be so loud before you get complains." He set the food on the table, turning on the lights as he went. "Have you two been working this entire time?" Pidge stretching and popping joints back into place was his answer. The man sighed and unpackage boxes of steaming dim sum.

"I wanted to finish and show Sombra around," Pidge stated, blunt and flat but the modulating voice has the opposite effect.

Baptiste gave that charming smile and raised a brow, voice purposely a silky smooth, "Why don't I get a test ride?"

The drifter smirked, meeting the challenge. Pidge leaned forward, rising to the toes but still too short to look him in the eye. To even the field they turned off most of the filters in the voice modulator, adding the odd rumble to Mar's honey low voice, "I can handle you both."

The combat medic looked surprised, even jumped a little when a hard cough erupted from Sombra. The pair laughed as the hacker spat out curses in Spanish. Pidge could have sworn they heard something about wanting a show but then she was bemoaning soda all over her keyboard.

"Whatever, I have a gorgeous date waiting for me too," Sombra pouted. The bot jumped off Pidge's shoulder and took the usual spot on the table. Pidge and Baptiste separated with laughter coming deep from their chest. The mysterious streamer turned the voice modular back on as the pair settled in for dinner.

The humanitarian made himself at home, almost acted as a maid with how he insisted on cleaning for his keep and ignored the fact that he was already playing nurse with Pidge and Angel. It was nice having someone melt at their cooking again and his warm presence during movies was only another positive.

"You don't really _holoholo_ , so you did what?"  
** Basically walk around

There was a large smile on the man's face as he stretch across the table to show off a few pictures, "Sightseeing of course!" Pidge smiled, rolling their eyes and muttering something about tourist. Baptiste took pictures of almost all the popular sites like the Hanauma Bay or the Pacific National Monument. He was never in the photos though. Being exclusive is probably a requirement to be Sombra's friend.

Baptiste took the phone and scrolled through it, "Sombra's been telling me I need more safehouses and I've been thinking of setting one up here." He set it back down and flicked through some photos of some apartments.

"I'm surprised she didn't tell you to live in an abandon warehouse," Pidge said with a laugh. "I suggest… Studio, outside of Atlantis. Rent is too high and the area is way too popular."

"Studio? How is that any better than a warehouse?" Baptiste asked with amusement. "What's with you two and studio homes."

Pidge made a face and noise, "Why bother with walls if it's only you and you'll be out majority of the time?"

"Because it's still home."

"Define home."

Sombra's Arturo bot huffed, finally moving in a natural and fluid way that signaled her return, "Don't engage in philosophy with them. Oh and _pullito,_ " The hacker perked up with a grin. Pidge smiled and raised a brow in amusement. "Meet, _araña!"_

A photo projected out from the palm. Sombra was in the corner only her mouth visible between two fingers in a rude gesture just as appropriate as her supposed _date's_ attire. A cat suit with a deep V cut that dipped lower than the table and a face that somehow made a deep detesting scowl look elegant-

Pidge nearly short circuited, trying to breath both through their gills and mouth while drinking water. Baptiste and Sombra howled in laughter, both lightly pounding the table.

"Assholes… Get me a few pictures? I wanna draw her."

Sombra only howled harder, a loud beating on the table mimicked the soft thumbs the bot was making. " _Ay_ , Widow! Wanna be painted like a French girl?"

A soft confused but rather annoyed, "Pardon?" was laced with a French accent much stronger than Baptiste.

\---

Baptiste couldn't recognize them at the but Mar was almost certain Sombra knew. The hacker was oddly passive in public, content on watching the world from Baptiste's shoulder during the hospital visits but now the combat medic was working.

Mar was hyperaware of themselves, trying not to be too familiar with the bot in their arms but they couldn't help it. Cuddling Sombra was as natural as breathing…

"I'm bored," Sombra whispered. They were waiting behind glass watching the operation. Unlike their augments, Angel was put to sleep as the metal was grafted onto skin and deep into her bones-

Mar shut their eyes, taking a deep breath. They stepped away instead of falling into another memory, "Yeah." Mar doubted either of them was bored, they just couldn't watch any longer. "What do you want to do… Violet?" They couldn't help the smile at the end.

Maybe Sombra didn't know. Arturo tensed and Mar imagined Sombra fighting a groan at the horrible alias. "Atlantis is supposedly a little Oasis in the Pacific…"

"Comparing Atlantis to Oasis is a crime. How could you think we are so shallow?"

Sombra gasped, looking up at them and giggling. She wiggling free to sit on Mar's arms. Delighted omnic eyes stared up at them and Mar found themselves agreeing before Sombra said anything, "Show me then."

The drifter smiled and they were out of the hospital and on their hoverboard within minutes. It was common for hover-skaters to cruise above traffic but Mar didn't have the heart to do so when Arturo flinched and tense just a few feet off the ground.

Mar slowly lowered them to the ground, even kicking off with their feet to help Sombra feel grounded. She was across the ocean, but what did their neurals pick up? Was it more than a visual and audio feed? Mar couldn't remember if they left the gyroscope in the bot or not.

"Relax," Mar said softly. The hacker grumbled in Spanish and the grip eased off bruising skin. She let the drifter adjust Arturo, so the bot was hugging Mar's neck, an hand pressed firmly against the bot's back. "Better? You can always disconnect if you get to scared." They sang tauntingly.

Slowly Mar ascended off the ground. The bot's grip tighten and Sombra only looked out of the corner of its eyes. "… No." Sombra eventually murmured. "A friend tried to teach me once."

Mar grinned at the memory. Pidge tried showing off by weaving through traffic and they almost crashed into a truck. Sombra refused to step onto the hoverboard after that. Mar hummed, "Perhaps your friend wasn't a good teacher."

Sombra was quiet for a moment. "Perhaps. Difficult to teach when you're not fucking there." The anger in her voice could drag an angel to hell.

Mar frowned, glancing down to make sure Sombra couldn't see their face. Sure enough the hacker directed Arturo's gaze to the city. Maybe Sombra didn't know… or maybe she did and this was just an easier way to bring it up?

Either way the drifter was going to maintain the Mar persona. "Do you want to vent- Ugh." They huffed a call blinking in the corner of their vision. "Sorry, Vishkar probably wants to yell at me more."

"Fuck 'em," Sombra grumbled. Her head- Arturo's head buried into Mar's neck and shoulder, hair tangling in metal bits but they didn't flinch when a strand or two was pulled out. They lowered themselves to the ground.

Mar rubbed the bot's back, more for their own comfort. "Hello Mr. Korpal," Mar answered. "Out for a midnight stroll?"

"If I was in still in India, perhaps." Mr. Korpal answered smoothly.

Mar hummed in though, too elegant to be a venomlike sneer. "In Rio?" The tensions has been escalating and if Vishkar was smart they'll see Rio de Janeiro as a failure.

The answer was clip, "Satya is waiting for you at the Vishkar Academy."

Mar bit hard on the candy in their mouth, loudly cracking it. They imagine Sanjay wincing. "Certainly Ms. Vaswani's talents are-"

Sanjay loudly yawned into their comms. "Sorry to impose but would you kindly help your _boss_ around, Dr. Rōzeki? She's investigating rather sensitive materials."

"As you wish, _pua'a yaro_." Mar said, voice even and gentle even as they spat out a mix of insults at the end.  The call ended and the drifter sighed. "Apologies, Vishkar is pulling me into work."

Sombra blinked up at them. "What'd you say at the end? My translator couldn't pick it up."

"Well… it's two languages-"

"Hawaiian and Japanese."

Mar huffed and pouted, "That's no fun." Sombra giggled and tugged on their hair a little demanding the answer. "Basically I was calling him a pig's asshole."  
**Pua'a: Pig. Yaro: Bastard

"You often mix languages to get away with insulting people?"

"Only when I can't get caught."

Arturo didn't remove its head from their shoulder but Sombra kept chatting till they arrived at the Vishkar Academy. It was a sudden language lessons that revolved around swearing and cussing.

Somehow Sombra knew bits of Gaelic and French. Officially Mar was fluent in English, Hawaiian Pidgin English, and ASL, with random knowledge of whatever floated around the island.

"Like what?" Sombra asked.

"Mostly Asian. China, Korea, Japan. Some Portuguese and Puerto Rico stuff."

"Okay but you listed countries not languages."

Mar frowned at Sombra. They could hear the grin in her voice and Arturo was fidgeting in the way Sombra did when she was excited, "I'm not listing five plus dialects. You seem smart and resourceful," Mar smirked, almost a little too much like Pidge so they smoothed it over with a gentle and teasing laugh. "I think you can figure it out."

They stepped off their hoverboard, reattaching the straps and slinging it onto their back as they held Sombra- ugh, Arturo in their arms. Security gave Mar a glare and pointed look at the bot. It was a security breach but their kind and glowing smile deterred them from saying anything.

The locals gave polite smiles and friends either kissed their cheek. Only those brought in from Vishkar stared at Arturo. Sombra flipped on one off and Mar held the bots arms down since then.

"Must you make things difficult?" They sighed quietly. Sombra only laughed while Mar rolled their eyes. "Would you kindly behave in front of Ms. Vaswani?" They didn't get an answer, only more chuckles and giggles. With a deep breath and some hesitation Mar walked into their own studio.

Ms. Vaswani stood in the center, examining the Manta rig suspended by a device under it. The architech looked at them and merely raised a brow, that stoic stare tittering on the edge of displeasure. "Dr. Rōzeki. Vishkar is not responsible for any personal projects brought onto the premises."

"Can you _please_ drop the Doctor?"

Ms. Vaswani's yellow eyes dragged upwards. "Hm… no." Mar sighed and Ms. Vaswani glanced to Mar's Manta rig behind her then to Arturo. "Must your designs be so…" She clicked her tongue, that crease appearing between her brows when she's trying to be polite. "Excessively improvised?"

"That's the most polite way you've said chaotic and asymmetrical, Prof. Vaswani." Mar murmured with a grin. Satya's head snapped back to the drifter. They froze a little, shifting uncomfortably as they remembered the crowd of the lecture halls and the pressure of a hundred or more eyes on them during debates.

Sombra made a noise, a hiss of soda can snapping Mar out of the memory before it could completely overwhelm them. Maybe Sombra did know? "Sorry." The drifter whispered.

"Then prove it," Ms. Vaswani said, voice blunt and only a small curve of her lips. Mar rolled their eyes but stood beside her as the architech analyzed their Manta rig. "You're schematics matches the prototype though… neither includes a power source."

"… Augments." Mar answered in a tiny unconvincing voice. Ms. Vaswani snorted but didn't press further. They were far too familiar with Mar's antics and wordlessly presented a datapad. It was a map of the Atlantis district, with several blinking dots Mar frequented. The Cove was the dot a few miles off shore, the abandon prototype of the Lunar Colony. The second was Pidgin's apartment nested in the middle of the art district. The third was the very academy.

Mar pressed their lips together, eyes slowly panning up. Ms. Vaswani was difficult to read, she was smart and indifferent. But few similarities overlapped with Mar and that was enough to know what Ms. Vaswani _wasn't_ feeling or _wouldn't_ do.

Ms. Vaswani wasn't relaxed, wouldn't look away from Mar or the bot for more than a few seconds. The photon projector was on the desk… The women was weary but didn't feel endangered.

The drifter decided more information was needed. They tapped at the datapad, trusting their reflexes to defend themselves if the Vishkar agent did attack. It was all security breaches, time stamped and detailed on what the hacker stole, traced back to Mar's usual hang outs.

The Cove must have been Lynx, they took emails, transcripts, dug into communications. Pidge's apartment is Sombra, dated the day she payed Pidge but it was falsely written as a visor blueprint. Mar had no idea who was hacking Vishkar from the inside-

"Satya, this was just a few minutes ago." Mar said jogging to the women in a few steps. Ms. Vaswani easily looked over Mar's shoulder as they tapped away at the datapad. The hack was the security systems and the drifter was denied further information.

Ms. Vaswani easily reached over them and put in her password. Video feed popped up, purple and pink pixels floating around. Mar tensed, glad that Sombra couldn't feel it through Arturo's metal.

Maybe Sombra didn’t know Pidge and Mar are the same person and this was a test. So Mar withheld the boiling glare at kept watching the video.

The cameras cycled through. Eventually showing two topless junkers standing the corner with the tiny one covering his ears. It took Mar a moment to recognize the hook that pulled an omnic off them during the beach incident- A fuse was burning against the wall.

"That's a bomb," Mar said as the ground gently shook and the explosion went off on the live feed. "Fucking seriously?" Mar scowled. They shoved both Arturo and the datapad into Satya's arms and pulled off their jacket, throwing it onto the desk.

Mar thought about pulling off their shirt and pants but looked at Sombra's bot as they turned on the Manta Rig. Sombra was quiet, the unexpressive face almost intimidating as those purple eyes stared at them.

The augments on their torso fully extended, ripping through fabric as the rig latched on. The tail ripped out of their jeans coiling around Somb- Arturo and pulling it into their arms.

"Behave." The drifter gave Sombra a stern look that only made her giggle and boop their nose.

"And the legs?" Ms. Vaswani asked grabbing her photon projector.

The rig's arm mimicked Mar's hand, waving her concerns away before encasing themselves around the drifters arms. "Mostly for protection and keep me warm, minor thrusters but absolutely useless outside the water." They were realizing what changes Sombra and Mar… Sombra and Pidge- They'll need Sombra's help to redesign the rig for surface use.

"This is heavy and I can already feel it overheating. We need to get this done quickly." Mar said. They tried to hind the pain as the heavy rig pressed into sensitive skin.

Mar and Ms. Vaswani quickly arrived at the basement level, doors opening as Mar retied their hair to keep it out of their face.

"Satya!" Mar's tail wrapped around the women, heavy rig jumping in front of them and absorbing the scrap. They screamed, some of the metal cutting deep into their leg. The drifter turned shoving Satya into the cover of the elevator.

Metal flashed, rapidly closing and already dripping of blood. Mar ducked the hook, scrambling to keep balance as they lured them away from the elevator. The tail was purely an aesthetic choice and Sombra improvised it into a self-defense weapon. Now it was the only thing keeping Mar from face planting as they were thrown around by several grenades and a heavy fist.

Sombra chuckled, "You're surprisingly clumsy out of the water."

"Surprisingly? You know of _any_ marine animal that’s graceful _outside_ the water?" Mar grumbled under their breath. They grunted again, the hog's fist hitting their ribs, adding to another dent in their rig.

A crackling laughter drew their attention away for a split second. Enough time for the hook to dig deep into metal and pull them off their feet and into another punch. He was pull back, a white hot tail and blue energy beam burning his skin.

"Oi! Stop cooking my pal, will ya!?" Junkrat screamed several bombs thrown down the hall. Mar groaned, picking Satya up and running again. Explosions threw the pair off balance for a second.

Satya scowled quickly climbing down before Mar was even stable. "That is not always necessary."

"You're the only reason Mr. Korpal hasn't fired me, so I'll take the extra precaution." Mar muttered. They crouched down for a second, trying ease some of the weight off the healing burns. "Plan? I can't keep fighting."

"We prevent their escape. Reinforcements should be here soon. "

"Roger, roger."

\---

The clattering of Sombra's keyboard was oddly soft. Warm hands wandering through their hair, calloused for a women who hacks all day. Still Pidge murmured and cuddled into her. Light touches followed the sensitive skin against metal and they took a shaky breath. Sombra's chuckle was low and hot, dancing soft along their neck and shoulders like a memory. Her hands followed the neurals to Pidge's spine and their next breath turned into a whimper. The inhibitor was always the most sensitive part…

Baptiste's voice was a cold shock, "Are you sure its okay?"

" _Si_ , _si!"_ Sombra grumbled over clattering metal and clacking keys. Pidge groaned the heat coiling in their gut now a cold rush in their veins. Whatever pleasant dream they were having was slowly pushed out as a painful throbbing ran up their leg. "Good morning, _pullito!_ I got another present for you!"

Pidge groaned, stuffing their pillow into their face and rolling away from Baptiste. They loved him almost like a brother but he was not Sombra. It took a minute for Pidge to find the right calibration for the voice modulator, "You mean my payment?"

"What's a few favors between friends?" Sombra said. With another groan Pidge pulled the pillow off as the bot jumped across the mattress and plopped down at Pidge's chest. It was a little heavier than normal with a small power core in its arms- "Tada! The last part for your hoverboard! It's an upgrade of the power unit in Satya's arm and photon projector, the parts in it should be able to handle your electric power whatever."

Everything went over Pidge's head. Their heart raced, the pain was warm but not _painful_. "When- _how_ did you steal this? Mushu's been trying for months!"

Sombra opened a screen in its palm. The video started with Mar diving in front of Ms. Vaswani, protecting her from one of the rat's bombs only to be pulled away by a hook. Mar barely turned in time, thick metal absorbing all the scrap from that homemade gun.

During that fight Arturo must have flown off and ran out of the room. The cameras swapped, following the tiny thing down hallways. Sombra knew exactly where to direct their little bot, easily hiding seconds before security ran through.

Eventually they made their way to the labs. Sombra didn't even walk in and out, they were technically on the mainland, probably just directing the bot through the neural augments. "You literally just sat thousands of miles away thinking and stole one of the most guarded tech Vishkar had! Dude, I love you."

"I already know that. Praise me _more!"_ Sombra demanded with a playful whine.

Pidge laughed, jumping out of bed and hugging the bot close. "Using Manta as bait was brilliant, the timing- did you hire those junkers?!"

Sombra scoffed. "Of course not."

Pidge only laughed harder, practically skipping to the pair's workbench. Their hands gently set Sombra on their shoulder and their hands went to work taking apart the power core when a loud cough pulled the two out of it.

Baptiste crossed his arms over the chest and apron. "No. You two can work _after_ you eat."

"But-"

"Sombra, don't make me force Gabe out of your room."

Pidge frowned, wrinkling their nose and gesturing to the power core, "Can we at least take it apart?"

"No, don't inhale dinner either."


	4. idle current

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> secret life shenanigans backfires

Pidge got out of the shower in nothing but the usual, shorts and a towel draped around their neck. Baptiste and sometimes Sombra barely gave them a glance now but the hacker would constantly complain if Pidge wore anything that covered their back.

Today they seemed to engross with whatever was on her screens. The drifter relaxed on the couch, head on Baptiste back while Sombra laid on their chest. The mechanical and hard-light keyboards clicked loudly, the hacker going through all the information the Vishkar _willingly_ gave her. Mainly the schematics for the Manta rig.

"The best part is once you show up with me this _Mar_ would get the blame." She said with a low chuckle. Sombra didn't know, the game was still going and so far Pidgin was winning. Every so often Baptiste would drop some popcorn into their mouth and Sombra would complain for attention.

"Wait why frame Manta of all people?" Pidge asked a cold realization settling in their chest. Maybe Sombra was playing a long con? It was an odd, feeling nervous from fear and excitement. "Do you know how important Manta is to Atlantis?"

"I don't _officially_ see their name on anything," Sombra scoffed. "And if _Mar_ is so smart they'll figure a way out of the mess." Pidge closed their eyes holding in a groan. "Oh! Look at this!" They opened their eyes to see another post on one of Hana's many accounts. It was a picture of a site under construction, "New room for all my trophies? OR new teammates >:3c ??" She read in a poor imitation of D.Va's voice.

_"Sombra!"_

_"Estoy trabajando en ello!"_ Sombra yelled back. She sighed, "Sorry, I'll join you two on the next movie night. We're hitting Volksya in a few days."

Pidge gave a displeased hum, the voice changer almost making it sound like a growl. "You sure you don't want my help?"

" _Sí, sí. Te estoy guardando para mí un poco más. Adios."_ Sombra said and quickly logged out of the bot. Pidge only yawned, cuddling the bot and snuggling their face into Baptiste stomach.  
**I'm saving you for me a little more

"Goodnight."

He laughed, hand combing through their hair, "Goodnight."

\---

Mar glanced at Ms. Vaswani. The readings in her visor hid much of her face but they knew what that frown meant. An _error_ in their blueprints, the millimeter difference between good and _optimized_ -

"Nnagh!" Mar groaned. Cold fingers pressed into their side, pain flaring hot across their body. They took a shaky breath and tried not to fight it. Another gentle poke made their back tense, tender skin pulling tight over various parts of their torso.

"Hm… The burns from the beach are fully healed, the scaring is near invisible in most lighting." The Vishkar doctor said. Ms. Vaswani made a face, wanting to disagree for a moment. "Your skin is surprisingly tender. You may have been allergic to the medicine."

Mar scoffed, drawling out in a tone that was almost Pidgin, "Yay."

"Now your leg," The doctor said. They knelt down and slowly removed red bandages. Mar distracted themselves by watching the only other occupant in the room, Ms. Vaswani. Normally it would be Sombra but the women was off hacking Russia.

Did Sombra actually keep in shape after all these years or did one of the Los Muertos boys carried her like Pidge did during the harder infiltrations. The image made them laugh a little. Probably not, the only thing those gangbangers could climb was an open window.

Hopefully the arrogant women wouldn't be mouthing off when she finally trips an alarm. They weren't there to bail her out-

Mar gasped, ripped from their thoughts as shock flared through their calf. The pain but not _painful_ warmth slowly crawled up and up, past their knees and higher. They held their breath, choking a groan in their throat. The doctor poked and pressed, warmth ripping deeper and suddenly it became the blister white hot _pain_.

"Healing exceptionally well…" The doctor muttered. Mar had tears in their eyes but they didn't miss the surprise in his voice. The slight airiness that broke the Vishkar monotone professionalism.

Mar: Mushu can you sample the goop Vishkar gave me?  
Mushu: No  
Mushu: Your pet hacker is still giving me a headache  
Mar: .Sombra is busy… No wait you mean Lynx???  
Mushu: I did say pet.

"I recommend staying out of the water until your leg is fully healed, but you are clear to go diving again." The doctor finished bandaging their leg. The two architechs were out the door immediately.

The walk to Mar's office was quiet, filled with ambient noise their augments tried to analyze. What little gossip there was, was about the break in a few days ago and the explosive aftermath after. The junkers took over the transport and was somewhere in the continental States.

Ms. Vaswani cleared her throat. " _Our_ superiors are not pleased with our performance."

The drifter sighed, "And what's my reparation?" Ms. Vaswani didn't say anything. She had that same frown she had in the medical room, wanting to disagree. Mar lowered her voice, eyes casually wandering over the cameras in the hall. "You're smart Satya and Sanjay hates me. Better the troublesome artist than the leading architech."

"It was _my performance_ that hindered our mission."

Mar rolled their eyes and opened the door to their office. "It was?" They said with a sly tone that made Satya pause at the door. They grinned, "Perhaps a private encore would convince me- Satya wait!" Mar laughed, trotting after Ms. Vaswani as she strutted down the hall. "You offered to help me repair my rig!"

"Rebuild," Ms. Vaswani corrected. She pouted on the walk into their office but relaxed once she started working. The architech walked around the floating rig twice, updating things displayed on her visor.

During the fight, Roadhog hooked the rig's arm and tried to tear it off. He manage to cut several wires and the hydraulic system, completely crippling the arm. Mar ran their hands over the dents on the hard metal. Some scraps and bolts were still stuck in it.

"The metal conducts too much heat." Ms. Vaswani state.

Mar leaned past the rig to stare at her, throwing a hard candy into their mouth. "Well… yes. The ocean floor is very cold without the sun heating it up," They answered bluntly.

"A problem easily corrected if you used a mech. Certainly we can use the Leviathan's frame work to create an interface with your augments."

The drift huffed and pouted until Ms. Vaswani glared at them for an answer. "…Aesthetics though." Ms. Vaswani's face dropped, still angry but moretired and unsurprised. They tried to cover a grin that spread past their fingers. "So what upgrades did you have in mind?"

"You're copy ability." She said quickly. "The photon projector will remember the scans from your augments. Though it is still _temporary_."

"Does it come with the turrets and teleporter?"

"Hm… no," Ms. Vaswani answered. She tapped a few keys on the computer, projecting the updated blueprints of the Manta rig.

The pair fell back into an old routine. Ms. Vaswani working on the blueprints and schematics, hashing out the finer details while Mar sculpted a small rough prototype. There was more arguing than Mar remembered and Ms. Vaswani relented more than usual.

Mar frowned when the women was looking. The guilty sighs Ms. Vaswani let out was wearing down Mar's patience. They missed Sombra's wit and snark, the challenge. They sighed as Ms. Vaswani corrected another of their mathematical errors.

"Knock, knock!" Angel said walking right in. She grinned, practically skipping towards the pair. "Aloha, Prof. Vaswani! Look we're matching now."

Ms. Vaswani softly scowled at it, "Pleasure to see… _most of_ you again, Ms. Akela Lilineo." Angel made a face, ducking her head to try and hid it.

She stepped back and muttered an apology. "Anyway I'm allowed to go home! Me, Jelly and Mr. Augustin are celebrating and wondering if you two would like to join us."

"Plans with my mother," Mar half lied with a smile. They were busy entertaining Sombra and Baptiste too visit.

"Preparations for tomorrow." Ms. Vaswani said gesturing to the floating rig.

\---

Mar carefully reorganized the scraps of papers and news clipping on the kitchen table. They moved everything from the living room so Mar could crash for the night. Lynx Seventeen once again apologized for the clutter and stealing their room.

Mar ignored it, they rarely stayed at their mothers anyway. The drifter read what Sombra has been doing since they left Mexico and even before they met her. A hack dated back almost six or seven years ago, Sombra had released imprisoned Los Muertos members and causing a deadly riot.

"I didn't think you were old school," Mar said.

Lynx Seventeen shrugged their shoulders. "I'm not. I move around a lot but Mushu found most of it."

Mar scowled for a second, eyes cutting to the omnic talking with their mom. They took a deep breath and set it in a pile Lynx directed too. "Should have known."

"You would have if you were around more!" Mushu yelled.

Mar rolled their eyes and picked up another clipping. The drifter quickly set it back down and tried not to smile. It was about hacked demolition equipment and a few casualties of LumeriCo employees. It the first day Pidgin met Sombra and neither was happy to be partnered with each other. A fight and several accidents later they were suddenly in a collapsing building, laughing for some reason.

"So how do these old stuff connect?"

Lynx shrugged, "I had my doubts but Mushu suggested we gather all technical reports around Dalrado."

"Had?"

"When I tried to verified the clippings I couldn't find _anything_." Lynx Sevetween said, arms crossed and ears twitching. "Everything was whipped. So I guess old school has some merits."

Mushu grumbled, a few metal plats literally rumbling together as the omnic walked over. His aperture eyes rolled and his lighting shifted glowed soft red in annoyance. "Old school is plenty useful. Just ask the MEKA kids."

Mar scowled, "Because child soldiers are the best example for this?" They sighed quickly calming down before they actually caused an uproar.

Mushu sneered and prodded a little more instead, "Angel's right. You are being rather temperamental."

Mar glared, "I haven't been drifitng in while. Lots of energy."

Mushu's lights shifted, a soft breathing glow of pink and white. "Right," He said highly amused. "Getting beaten around does good for the ego. You should _relax with friends_ a little more." If his face was capable of grinning it would be punched right off-

The drifter took a deep breath, relaxing their shoulders and unclenching their fist. They didn't want to play Mar anymore but didn't have a reason not to without Sombra around. Tomorrow she'd be back controlling Arturo.

\---

As much as Mar hated rebuilding the Manta rig, working with Ms. Vaswani was… enlightening as always. The surface design installed into the hoverboard was much smaller and lighter. It didn't give Pidge a lot room to work with but with Ms. Vaswani's schematics and power core it was looking plausible.

Mar was certain Sombra would push the copy ability even further. Ms. Vaswani shield technology reduced power drain so maybe Sombra could help the drifter figure out how to get the hover technology working while the rig was in use.

But the hacker's been gone for three days.

Mar sighed, blinking away all the schematics and diagrams. The soft light of the elevator a little hard to adjust too but they could make out Angel's reflection.

She took a long sip, staring Mar in the eyes. She released the straw with a pop, "Got stood up by Satya?"

Mar looked at Angel raised brow, "No. Why do you ask?"

"You've been rather… pouty." Angel said with a shrug, "like when Whiptail  accidentally stood you up."

Mar huffed, crossing their arms under their chest. "And how am I when I'm _pouty_."

"Quiet, indifferent…" Angel smirked a little and wiggled her brows. "Stubborn and fight-y." Mar laughed a little, sighing at the end and playfully rolling their eyes. Angel grinned a little. "Come on! It's our first day back since in almost a month!"

"I am excited to try out Ms. Vaswani's design."

"It's so chrome even blind zomnic can see you." Angel sneered. Mar rolled their eyes and the elevator finally stopped at the central hub. Angel stepped off, kissing Mar's cheek and waving bye. "Pass that along to Angler and Goblin, yeah?"

"Promise!" Mar yelled back as the door closed. They sighed leaning against the cool metal as the elevator continued to the Abyssal floors.

They reopened the chat with Sombra, rereading the hacker complaining about the cold and the temptation to overheat the augments. The idle wishes that Pidgin was here to keep her warm and maybe to steal a few things from the factory.

Pidge responded with news clips of the failed assassination attempt on Katya Volskya. They never got a response but an old like played in their head, _"Dead canaries don't sing, pullito."_

The news only talked about Volskya's casualties. Of course there was no information on the assassins and Sombra would only be able to wipe the data if she was alive. Mar closed the chat, stepping out into the docks where Angler and Goblin waved them over.

"Lil' Manta! Welcome back," Angler said, hugging the recovered human softly. Mar kissed both omnics cheeks in hello. "Orca and Whiptail are bringing in your rig as a test run for their mechs-"

The alarms interrupted them, "Warning. Speed limit excided. Clear entry." It said just as Orca erupted from the water. Mar tried running but Angler pulled them close. Her talons dug deep into the ground, bracing them a wave washed out everything that wasn't bolted down, including a screaming Goblin. Several feet in front of them metal scrapped and sparked, Orca loudly swore and cursed.

"Sorry, sorry! I threw her," Whiptail said through the open channel. "Still getting used to the new gear. Thought the Manta Ray would be heavier…"

Mar sighed, "And Ms. Vaswani was worried about the zomnics ruining the rig."

\---

For the next few days Angler and Goblin kept closer than usual during patrols, particularly to Mar. While Angler was luring zomnics into a trap Goblin would be at their side. While Goblin was flanking Angler would be at Mar's back, literally.

It was reflex for that energy charged tail to whip and wrap around during a skirmish, so when Angler screamed Mar froze. They couldn't see in the dark the same way the omnics could. Their vision came in pulses, electrolocation turning the darkness into something they can almost see.

A strong pulse told them that Angler was okay, the electrocution shorting her mech and burning out several things. They scowled and distanced themselves from the omnic, "You know my back is the _worst_ place to stay!"

"Yeah, yeah…" Angler grunted. She flicked several switches trying to get their mech online again.

Orca swam in, crushing a zomnic against the metal debris. "I think the omnics are finally realizing we're _human_ , kid." Orca said with a laugh. Orca's powerful tail batted several small repair drones into bits. Mar gave a frustrated sigh and the team continued the patrol with less fuss from the team and more chatter from Angel and Jelly.

The pair alternated between desk work and investigating Pidgin. They'd take turns organizing mail and listing emails, the sudden interest in the Drifters added to their frustrations but they couldn't help the sharp tone in their voice.

"Numbani wants Whiptail and Manta for interviews. Some Rialto security is looking for general recruitment." Angel read, hitting delete after everyone. "Helix wants me, Manta and Orca, something about an Anubis AI…" She paused at that one, "Manta-"

"Decline." Mar said with a huff. They heard D.Va's streamer voice come through the comms and Mar smirked. "Are you watching the MEKA kids?"

"Maaaybe," Jelly sang. "She's probably the reason why we keep getting emails."

Mar frowned. They've been busy since they returned to the Cove, fine tuning the new gear. "What do you mean?"

Jelly and Angel made a noise, "Y'know… Obvious hints that she wants the drifters to join MEKA. Challenging, admiration."

"LumériCo wants an interview!" Angel interrupted with a laugh. "Delete! Oh, hollywood wants me and Mar for a movie."

"Pass," Mar said with a frustrated scoff. The zomnics appeared in Angler's light and the team sprang forward. Goblin and Mar first, taking down a few in quick lethal strikes. Orca and Whiptail stopped those trying to flee. It was over within a minute and the team continued the patrol.

Eventually the couple got tired of the endless emails and just watched the stream. They listed off names of who Pidgin could be and made guesses about the mysterious streamer.

Some were miles off mark like Pidge's physical appearance or hobbies, everyone kept guessing the popular body type and following that, the couple thought Pidgin was a rugby player.

Orca smirked quickly cutting off their comms to bark a laugh they could hear through the water. Mar rolled their eyes and playfully shoved the older Rōzeki.

Other times they were amazed at how insightful the pair could be. Pidgin was smart, three moves ahead of their opponent in almost any game. They preferred crowd control above all else and were far too willing to sacrifice teammates to make a risky play.

They were just a coin flip away and it made Mar's heart and mind _race._

The Manta drifter, was the ace of the Abyssal divers. Photon projectors able manipulate the situation into their favor. They were a team player, scanning for weaknesses and letting their teammates lead the attack. They was a hero.

On paper.

But what did Mar actually do? They let the zomnics swarm Whiptail while they almost cooked themselves alive with a cannon. Sacrificial lamb, risky maneuver.

"Manta who do you think Pidgin is?" Angel asked. This time Mar sulked. That LumériCo protest was the dumbest shit they pulled.

"I think the streamer is keeping their identify a secret for a reason and people should respect that." The answer was automatic, flat and professional. The comm was silent except for Jelly and their mother snickering.

"Thanks _Dr. Rōzeki_ ," Angel said with a loud groan. "When was the last time you've been on a date?"

Mar sputtered, water getting caught in their gills and air choking their lungs.  They immediately thought of the all nighter they pulled with Sombra, the bot warming their chest as they both passed out on different couches. Mar choose to deflect the question instead, "What does that have _anything_ to do with this?"

"Mushu has been spreading rumors," Whiptail said. His tone of voice made them think the omnic was physically waving them off too.

"How can a gay omnic be such a guy still…" Angel muttered, "No, it’s the lack of romance! This gorgeous mystery coming in and sweeping you off your feet, only opening up to you-"

"I think we know why Pidgin wants to keep their identity a secret now," Mar interrupted with a light laugh. It sounded normal over the mic but face to face they'd see the uneasy smile. They let go with a long sigh, "Honestly I don't think they're a drifter. If they're entire value is based on mystery they wouldn't risk exposing themselves. Being casual with celebrities over the net is one thing but I doubt it flows to life outside off the net." They desperately wanted off this subject.

"Hm… Noted but boring so ignored," Angel sang. Mar huffed and scoffed, genuinely insulted for a few seconds. The Angel and Jellyfish continued their conversation, guessing which Shallow drifter was Pidgin.

"Oh shit! Um…" Angel and Jelly suddenly went quiet. They could hear things being shifted around and the mic flicked off for a few seconds.

Then Mushu was speaking over the comms, "Mar, would you kindly come to the command center?"

"Roger, roger. Returning to base." Mar said hearing their own confusion. Goblin escorted them out of the deeper parts of the Abyss and quickly returned to the team.

Mar didn't bother returning to the lower docks. They swam directly to the central hub, opening an airlock and walking around in the new rig. It was lighter, easier to balance out of the water but with the sensitive scars on their shoulders it wasn't ideal. They moved their shoulders, taking notes on how to improve the surface design.

Mushu was in his usual place, at the center of the room full of monitors. There were other teams scattered around monitoring their sectors but everyone was looking at the stranger Mushu was talking with. She stood, back straight, steeled eyes and confident shoulders. It was a very similar aura to their mother and Mushu.

"Dr. Rōzeki," The women said, bowing her head.

Mar paused. They immediately recognized the voice of Captain Myung. Mushu sneered over her shoulder, wisp of steam coming from open vents Mar clicked their tongue. "Please… drop the doctor," They asked quietly.

Captain Myung raised a brow but nodded, "Ms. Rōzeki." Mar tried not to stiffen at the formality. "I'm Captain Myung of the Korean Mobile Exo-Force. I'd like to recruit you and some of the Drifters to help defend the Eastern China sea."

"I vote yes!" Angel yelled down one of the halls. Mar glared at her and they giggled hiding again.

Mar looked at Captain Myung, walking a half circle around the soldier. Ignoring the way she tensed and scowled. No email or letter. The casual clothes meant it wasn't an official request. Showing up in person and keeping a low profile, most of the MEKA would probably disprove.

There's a reason D.Va is an act.

"I'm guessing the official statement is that the Drifters requested learning from MEKA to keep the public from working about their safety."

Captain Myung tensed, surprised flashing across her face. "… Yes. What exactly does your Vishkar Doctorate cover?" She couldn't help the snap at the end, flinching as the words left her mouth.

Mar grinned. It wasn't often they got the appropriate response but they tailored their appearance to soften their sharp mind, "On paper? Psychology." Then the captain's eyes turned cold. Mar could see her mind race, calculating the risk of an unknown variable.

The drifter took a breath, relaxing the tension in their shoulders. They made a show of stretching as if a knot had been annoying them all day. "I'll accept on a few conditions."

Captain Myung took out a little notepad and started writing it down. Volunteers would be allowed to wander Busan unsupervised. The MEKA and Korean government would take responsibility for any injuries during their stay. To Mar's surprise Captain Myung didn't hesitate to write the last request: Mar is free to choose both Omnic and Human volunteers.

"It'll take time… especially with that last requirement."

Mar shrugged, " _We_ have all the time in the world." Captain Myung hard stare returned. The drifter didn't need to finish that sentence. The world knew Busan and Russia was a broken hourglass with leaking sand. "I need to get things sorted with Vishkar anyway, my position lets me work from anywhere but it's best not to spring anymore surprises on them."


	5. new ocean, same waters

Pidge didn't get to see Baptiste off but Mar and Mushu agreed to meet Lynx Seventeen at the airport to catch up before their respective flights. The omnic thanked them, mostly Mushu, for their help with the Sombra Collective.

Mar contain the grin to the usual soft smile this persona wore, though Mushu glared at the extra glow of delight in their eyes. He tensed a little, his lights nearly shifting to show his mood. They rolled some candy across their teeth to hide a bratty grin.

"So… you're lead in Atlantis?" Mar asked.

After a long sigh Lynx glared back at them. "You two were right," They said through gritty vocals.

"I'm rarely wrong."

Lynx groaned into their hands, "Who places a red herring in Hawaii?!"

They all expected a false lead from Sombra but Hawaii was such an odd place for a bait which made the lure so much more realistic. But while the hacker was fuming something raced in Mar's chest.

The drifter saw the signs, knew Sombra better than anyone else but the women still had them dangling on strings all the way from Mexico. At that Mar couldn't hold it in and laughed a little, enjoying the surprise and nostalgia. Their ability to improvise off each other was what made them so successful during the summer.

Lynx grumbled, ears angled down. They were so cute, Mar couldn't help but coon out of pity.

"Sorry, you seem so…" Mar gestured vaguely to Lynx Seventeen's stiff posture and angry twitching antennas. "Disappointed? Sombra- The Sombra Collective did use 'dasvidanya' during their thank you message for the LumériCo hack."

"But why broadcast their next hit like that?"

Mar laughed understanding the frustration, "Reverse physiology work on everyone, not just humans."

Lynx scowled, antenna folding backwards like a cat ready to pounce. "Thanks, Dr. Rōzeki." The omnics let the human eat and nibble on some snacks for a moment. "But… why Hawaii? The trail in Atlantis was so small I thought it was an accident."

Mar hid another smile. It was a small slip up. The secure channel they used while Mar was in college went unused after graduation and was eventually terminated. Mushu based their security off Helix's firewall so she couldn't just hack into the drifter's systems. She had to message them privately during a stream.

"Something to ask when you catch them," Mushu patted the omnic's shoulder. That would be impossible, Mar would make sure of it but having someone so close to the truth was entertaining and knowing it was pissing Mushu off only adding to it. "Off to Russia to scavenge clues?"

Lynx sighed, "No, anything there will already be somewhere online." And removed or edited by Sombra, Mar thought with a small smirk the omnic didn't see. "I'm heading to Numbani."

"Send some snow. Or a postcard. Actually some info on Orisa's gravitation charge." Mar said, "I'm trying to talk Whiptail into some crowd control weaponry-"

"Mar Rōzeki. Please come to Gate 15." A flight attendant said over the speakers. Mar glanced at their ticket. When they told the flight attendant their flight wasn't for another hour they only got a pleasant smile. "A passenger in first class would like to switch seats with you, so they may sit with their partner." She said.

Mar tilted their head, thinking about it. "When does their flight leave?"

"In a few minutes."

Captain Myung didn't give an answer, Mar doubted the soldier even knew about their trip to Korea but they wanted to see the area before agreeing to the possibility of dying for it. They glanced at the complication sitting with Lynx. Mushu changed out of his usual horned faceplate but he was still an omnic. A rather threatening looking one.

"Give me a moment? I'm traveling with my brother," Mar said quickly trotting back to the omnics. "Hey, Mushu-"

"I heard," The omnic waved them off. "It's better if you test the waters. Make sure I won't get arrested when I land."

Mar rolled their eyes in doubt. "Alright, see you in a few hours. Bye Lynx. Send me something!" Mar hugged the hacker, giving them a kiss on the cheek.

When Mar got back to the gate they actually looked at the plane. It was one of those large first class planes. The attendant gave smile that was a little too pleasant, more sly than anything. They got the feeling they were lied to right at the start but boarded anyway.

The drifter was directed to premium floor upstairs, then to small room complete with a bed, desk and entertainment. Entertainment being both a holovid and strip pole.

"Oh my god…" Mar whispered to themselves. They ignored the soft amused laughter as the flight attendant left them to take pictures. They shot it to Mushu and Lynx, then to their mother. Afterwards they were just spamming anyone who would be jealous of it and accidentally sent it too Ms. Vaswani.

Satya: … a strip pole  
Mar: someone switched tickets with me and this is what I got. I swear  
Satya: Highly unlikely

Mar rolled their eyes and wandered as the regular passengers boarded. They recognized a few Vishkar employees who gave them surprised and mildly welcoming looks. Vishkar mingled with people in Oasis uniform or Numbani clothes. Mar avoided them and found a dining room with some appetizers and another for gambling, chairs and small lounge areas were all over the floor so the premium members could wander during flight. They sent pictures to Ms. Vaswani who wasn't surprised.

Satya: Perhaps if you agreed to a conference meetings you would be more accustom to your position

The drifter returned to their room, taking a seat as the plan started to take off. They checked their messages and email again, before turning off their communications for the flight.

Angel: BUISNESS MY ASS YOU BITCH  
Jelly: wtf is this airline called? The mile high club?

Mar chuckled a little at that but then their messages was hacked, Sombra's sugar skull flicking and engulfing their entire vision for a second, then a picture.

Wandering through a light crowd was that French women. Golden eyes glared over those sunglasses and delicate shoulder. They took in the tight dress and lithe frame to draw later. Sombra was in it of course, most of her face off but still blowing a kiss at the camera.

Mar didn't recognize the architect in the photo and there wasn't enough people to suggest a country. The lack of winter wear suggested they were out of Russia though.

Sombra: sorry, got in trouble and had to work my ass off for a bit.  
Pidgin: riiight. Is it still work if its fun and was it really your ass getting worked?  
Sombra: ;) you could always come and find out

Mar smiled, leaning back into their chair after digging Arturo out of their carry on. They ignored the pilots suggestion of turning off communications and barely glanced at the safety video playing on the halovid.

Sombra: oohh! And wat's this?

Images from the drifter's own files popped up in chat. One of the strip pole and several more drawings of Sombra's companion.

Sombra: you need to show these drawings when you meet Widow. She'll love them  
Pidgin: of course, of course. But the real question  
Pidgin: pole dance or nah?  
Sombra: .… Hm… Nah.  
Pidgin: o:  
Pidgin: jealous?  
Sombra: pffttt as if. I'm doing you a favor  
Sombra: you'll be thinking of my boobs and Widows ass too much to enjoy it

Mar closed the chat with a huff, steam puffing out of a vent or two. Their face burned and they could imagine Sombra's laugh tickling down their neck. Their eyes shot open, Sombra forcefully hacking into their system again. This time all they could see was an image of an open jacket, Sombra's cleavage and pierced tongue sticking out at the camera.

Sombra: you do have a bed… I'd ask if the door locks but you probably would leave it open.

Mar took a deep and slow breath, trying to cool the rising heat in their face and chest. They didn't respond, it was a game they were all too willing to lose so they'll hold on satisfying the hacker for now. They cuddle Arturo, opening their sketchbook to add Widow's piercing gaze.  
\---

The flight was around five hours long but the pilot must have been pushing the jets to cut an hour. As soon as they stepped off the plane they froze. Cyan sent them out of Mexico sometimes but Pidgin never visited Korea, yet the site was familiar.

Augmented eyes analyzed it as Mar slowly made their way to the baggage claim area. First they cross reference with photos they personally took, then photos that was sent. It ping the of the most recent one received.

From Sombra. The photo of Widow's ass and the hacker blowing a kiss. Sombra carefully cropped out the Korean text and advertisements. Their heart beat just a little faster.

Pidgin: You in Korea?

Sombra didn't answer. Instead she sent another photo. It was a restaurant in the airport with a receipt on held up. The time printed on it was three minutes ago.

Now their heart leapt to their throat. It took a great amount of control not to run. The drifter wandered, following directories and signs. They found the place within minutes but only because the worker was calling their name and order.

"Pidge! Chocolate strawberry smoothie for Pidge!" They walked up to the counter and took their drink. They added to the large pile of cash in the tip jar and hurried off. No sign of the hacker or the French women.

Pidgin: Where the fuck are you?!

Again another picture. Pidge's luggage was open in a car, clothes thrown around.

Sombra: you didn't break the sexy sweater!! >:(  
Sombra: fiiine. I guess I'll just have to help you try on some new clothes  
Pidgin: Sombra!!

Pidge huffed and hurried to baggage claim. They could feel their augmented eyes heat up, taking in a little too much information as they tried to scan for a familiar signature, that purple glow or even the obviously colored mohawk.

Five years of dreaming and thinking about the hacker. They were close to crying in desperation. If this was an elaborate trick... Pidge's heart plummeted, calming them down a little. They'd deserve it if Sombra was tugging their heart around.

Sombra: always a few steps behind pullito <3

The hacker sent another picture. It was a section of the pickup zone with a hooded women leaning on a car in the background. Sombra didn't crop out the Korean words, purposely framing them so Pidge could find her easier.

Sombra: hurry, your clue might leave soon

Pidge nearly ran out of baggage claim and to the road. The women was easy to find, tanned copper standing out among many pale Asians. Pidge looked around, bringing up the photo in the corner of their vision to find the angle Sombra took it at.

They walked down, and continued walking.

Sombra: Hmmm… getting cold.

Pidge scowled and looked back up. The photo was taken further down… So Sombra was actually in frame? The looked at it the picture, some people even standing in the same place while others left or shifted. The women was watching them with curious purple eyes now. But Pidge only gave a polite smile and wandered past looking for someone they haven't seen in so long.

Sombra: Cold.

Pidge immediately stopped. Their eyes wandered back to the airport, desperately searching until a familiar low chuckle spun them around. The women raised a brow.

"Do you need help…" She took a step and Pidge finally looked at her face. They blinked taking in ombre hair and bright purple eyes. Then a familiar smirk, crinkled the mole under her eye. "Me extrañaste, Maristela?"  
**Miss me?

Pidge's eyes went wide, they could feel their augments glowing hot as Sombra ever so slowly rolled their name off her tongue. A shiver almost brought them to their knees. Sombra grinned, far too delighted.

She moved slow, as if not to startle her pray. A barbell poked out as her tongue swiped their lips. Purple nails reached for their hair. Her thumb brushed against the augments on their cheeks, "Good think you always wore that mask. I'd have to beat off the others with a bat."

Somehow they switched places. Pidge's back pressed against the car. That hand on their cheek and hair slid down, following the loose braid, soft fingers drifting down fluttering gills on their neck. The sensitive skin around warm metal focused on the near coolness of the hacker's touch.

Pidge could barely breath, "Sombra…"

The women smiled, fingers continuing further and tracing the metal on their collarbones.

"You need something, Maristela?" Sombra asked, that accent thicker and slower to break Pidge in the right ways.

The drifter surged forward. They both groaned at clashing teeth but Sombra only pushed further, pinning Pidge to the car. One hand wrapped around their waist, slowly drifting up their spine, the right pressure on sensitive skin and metal making Pidge shiver. Another hand buried in their hair again, struggling between playing and gripping so Sombra could deepen the kiss.

A harsh bite almost pulled Pidge's mouth open and suddenly it was too hot to breathe again- Which was a good thing because Pidge didn't have any air left to scream when a sharp whistle blew at them.

Airport security yelled in Korean gesturing at Sombra car and for them to move. Sombra flipped them off, yelling angry Spanish back. Pidge gasped, their legs suddenly off the ground as the taller anarchist hoisted them up for another kiss. It was just wasn't as passionate, Pidge giggling too much but the innocents made it much more intimate. Sombra grinned, pulling back to rest their forehead and nose together.

When security started yelling again Sombra scowled and rolled her glowing eyes, "Some people can't enjoy a free show…" She opened the door for Pidge and slide into the driver seat afterwards. The hacker purposely burned the tires in the guards face before speeding out laughing.

"So where too first, pullito?" Sombra asked. "Shopping or apartment?"

Pidge hummed, a little too busy grabbing at Sombra's hands on the gear shift. "If we go to the apartment we'll never leave…"

"Shopping it is." Sombra grinned squeezing their hand before letting too grab the gearshift. Her glowing eyes flickered across the road and she laughed suddenly over taking several cars and flicking between the lanes. Pidge grabbed the handle above them laughing and shaking their head.

Somewhere in the back of their mind they knew it was a horrible idea. To join in on Sombra's crazy antics without the mask but it added to the thrill that beat hard in their chest.

\---

Sombra pinched her lips together. Glowing eyes wandering up and down Pidge's body. They twirled with a simple gesture of Sombra's fingers. "Hm… Those shorts make your ass look great. We'll need to find a better shirt."

Pidgin rolled their eyes, "I can always tailor it if you want it to be backless. Or y'know… use hard-light tech to make it."

"Where's the fun in that?" Sombra asked reaching forward and pulling Pidge onto her lap. Pidge couldn't stop the grin as her hands wandered their sides, slipping under the shirt and bringing it higher and higher.

Despite the grin her touchers were frustratingly chaste and light. Sombra forced them to chase her touch until the shirt was thrown over their head. She pushed Pidge off her lap and easily position them to stand close between her knees.

Then the process started all over again, this time Sombra's breath tickled their clevage, the smile so close it was a ghost over their skin. When Pidge's arms came up Sombra sneered and batted them away.

The drifter groaned, then gasp trying to stifle all other noises with their hands. Sombra's grin and eyes deepen, near predatory. With a wink fingers unsnapped the button and slowly pulled the zipper down. Another hand traced the gills on their torso and the Pidge's breathing was too loud for the dressing room. The hacker's soft hands were still too light over Pidge's ass as she pulled the shorts down.

Sombra leaned back, admiring the heaving chest and red tone crawling from their chest up to their neck and higher still to tinting their ears.

Pidge felt like they were floating and drowning at the same time. Body light but never getting enough air. They turned following Sombra's slow fingers in a circle. They stopped when hands grazed their hips. They had to brace themselves against the wall, body shaking as her hands traced the spinal augments and another explored invisible burns.

Then they didn't feel like they were floating, "No. I- I can't. Not at the same time."

"Ssshh," Sombra hummed easing their hands off their spine. "So… it was that bad?" She asked. Her tone was slowly becoming too serious. Pidge nodded and gently showed where the damage was. They pushed Sombra's hands up and up, to their shoulder and halfway up their neck. Then down to their elbow.

Sombra gently brought them down from their high, helping Pidge redress with casual touches but didn't miss the chance to leave a lipstick stain at their collarbone. The pair returned another set of clothes onto the rack and Sombra lead them to another store.

This store had silk dresses and embroidered suits in all styles. They gave Sombra a questionable look and the hacker rolled their eyes, "I have a thing I need to dress up for tomorrow. I'm acting as a doctor's assistant so… Dr. Rozeki," Sombra drawled slowly, grin spreading across her face. "What's your diagnosis."

"You're a cunt." Pidge said with a roll of their eyes. Sombra chuckled, hand snuggling in Pidge's pocket and pulling the drifter flush to her hips as they walked. It took a bit of effort for Pidge to wiggle free and get a good look at Sombra. Long hair, untattooed face, smirk that made Pidge boil in both frustration and frustration. They remembered the last picture Sombra sent, the open jacket and cleavage. "A dress," They said licking dry lips.

Sombra sneered and trotted over to a rack of dangerously low cut dresses. Pidge ragged a random one and dragged Sombra to the nearest changing room.

They weren't as teasing as the hacker was. The jacket was off and teeth dug into bare skin. Sombra's hands clapped hard over her mouth, a groan shivering out of her. Pidge smiled against the hard pulse, tongue massaging skin as they sucked hard.

The hacker took a breath when Pidge pulled back, marking down to her breast. "Well… bruja is going to be pissed," Sombra laughed pushing Pidge into her chest and arching into the next bite.

She eventually got a few dresses and some accessories. Nothing to cover the marks on her neck and chest. It was Mushu's message that stopped their shopping adventure. He was being escorted by airport security and swearing at them, both the security and his forgetful sister.

"Fuck…" Pidge groaned. "I completely forgot about him."

"I know," Sombra giggled beside her. She dropped the keys into their hands and winked. "Always a step behind, pullito. See you tomorrow." She winked and booped their nose.

Pidge took a second to see if Sombra was lying but used it to pull the hacker into a kiss instead. It almost lingered to half a minute before Pidge forced themselves to pull away and to the parking lot.

Gold eyes nearly made them stop. Widow's shades perched on her head as she stepped off a motorcycle. They dodged a car too watch the hacker trotted over to the French women who already looked annoyed by the grin. But then they cut back to Pidge.

They only saw the slight curve of Widow's lips thanks to the augments. Gold eyes pointedly looked down at Sombra, as if leading Pidge's eyes down the love bites on the hacker's neck.

Mushu: hurry up! I'm about to lite everyone here on fire.

Pidge cursed quietly getting into the car and glancing back at the pair. The French impassively accepted Sombra's arm through hers but that patients wore thin with Sombra's excessive goodbye kisses and other gestures.

The drifter beat the hackers record to the airport by several minutes even with the thicker traffic. The trouble Mushu was in was easy to clear. Pidge wore Mar's gentle smile and it eased the guards enough to listen to reason. Mushu had the right paperwork, forged and cleared by people with enough power and reputation to deterred them from double checking or even reporting the incident.

Mushu took the driver's seat and glared heavily at the shopping bags in the back. Pidge shrugged, "My flight landed early."

"Mine landed late." The omnic scowled. He pulled out and Pidge was already missing the rollercoaster feel Sombra created with her insane driving. "I business to do tomorrow. Want to help?"

Pidge frowned for a moment. "We're supposed to see if it's safe for Whiptail and the others to come here."

"Is that what you were doing?" He asked gesturing to the shopping bags. Pidge didn't even try to look guilty. They couldn't ignore the fond memories with Sombra.

"Alright, I do this and we're even."

"Even." Mushu agreed.

The rest of the day was spent in the hotel room trying not to day dream about the lovely mix of blue, purple and magenta. It was hard when Sombra kept sending pictures of herself or Widow in dresses.

Pidge: I have a job I need to prep for :(  
Sombra: well I am prepping for my job. You should tell me, so I can quiz you. Just like ur college days

Pidge rolled their eyes and grinned. A glance at Mushu sharpening shurikens and reloading them into his arms calmed them down a little.

Pidge: hard pass. Its my brothers gig  
Sombra: that lizard needs to get stuffed  
Pidge: convince Widow to wear a suit  
Sombra: ur a genius!!

Pidge got a few minutes to study maps of the area and layout of the building, look at the list of people attending the party and did research on major players. Many of them were from Oasis or Vishkar. The Korean Military might be trying to recruit more than just the Drifters.

Then another picture. Cold face with only the barest hint of confusion and amusement, jacket delicately cut for a slim frame but a little loose in some areas. What really made Pidge's heart race was the messy updo, thrown over their shoulder and Sombra's lightly blushing face in the mirror, Widow playing with their slacks as if she was the one that left the marks on Sombra's neck.

Pidge: … get it  
Pidge: I'll pay  
Sombra: already did, pullito ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THEY FINALLY MEET!


End file.
